Total Shinobi Island!
by Knifez
Summary: Total Drama Island/Survivor AU. Twenty-two Naruto characters are brought onto a summer-camp reality show as teenagers to compete for 100,000 dollars. They are voted out by each other one by one, and the last one standing wins the prize. Warning: Contains melodrama, love, hate, bold strategies, crazy challenges, wacky adventures and revolting bowl cuts. (15/22 remain)
1. Not So Happy Campers, Part One!

**Whoa. This is a large-ass project I'm about to undertake, but I think it's going to be a lot of fun!**

**Now, a good portion of you Naruto lovers probably won't know what show this story is based off of, so I'll give a quick explanation to catch your interest!**

**Basically, twenty-two Naruto characters are brought to an island as teenagers and **_**complete strangers**_** (some ages will be slightly altered but nothing too bad) where they must undergo challenges and face elimination. Think Survivor but a little wackier. I'll be using the challenges from the show "Total Drama Island" and following that format, but the elimination order and the interactions/relationships/conflicts will be my own creation, hence the funness.**

**This is a regular world AU. No ninja stuff. Just the people and their personalities, with minor tweaks to make them a little more realistic as people.**

**So, because there are only twenty-two people, some of the more prominent characters will not make it into the cast. I know some will be disappointed that their favorites are not in the story but I hope the cast I selected is diverse enough to catch everyone's interest. **

**Will your favorite make it far and win it all, or face a shameful early elimination? Will they get that kiss or get schmaked in the face? Find out here on Total Shinobi Island!**

**Couples: I will only give out two so as not to spoil the fun, but NaruHina and SasuSaku will be at the very least hinted at if not made canon.**

_**(IMPORTANT NOTE: CHARACTERS RELEVANCY TO CANON MATERIAL [AKA THE MANGA/SHOW] HAS NO INFLUENCE ON HOW FAR THEY MAKE IT. THERE IS NO ****GUARANTEE**__** THAT A MAIN CHARACTER WILL WIN THIS, THOUGH IT IS NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION. EVERYONE STARTS ON LEVEL GROUND, PLOT WISE.)**_

* * *

"Yo, we're coming at you live from Camp Wawanakwa, somewhere in Muskoka, Ontario!" A well-dressed man in his mid-thirties was seen standing on a dock. He flashed his shiny grin at the camera. "I'm your host, Chris McLean, dropping season one of the hottest new reality show on television right now!" He walked down the dock. "Here's the deal. Twenty-two teenagers have been chosen to spend eight weeks right here at this crappy old summer camp. They'll compete in challenges against other teens, and have to face judgment by their fellow campers in the event that they lose. After each challenge, one team will either win a reward, or watch one of their teammates leave for good." He chuckled.

He walked towards a small clearing, where a number of small stumps were set up as chairs, and an oil drum with a plate of marshmallows sat in front of it. "Their fate will be decided here, at the dramatic and drama-inducing campfire ceremony, where each week all but one camper will receive a marshmallow. In the end, only one contestant will be left standing, and will be rewarded with the ultimate prize, fame! To survive, they'll have to battle black flies, bears, disgusting camp food, and most importantly, each other. Every moment will be caught on camera by the hundreds of camera's situated around the camp. Who will crumble under the pressure? Find out right here, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

_**[Radical Theme Song]**_

* * *

"Welcome viewers, to the very first episode of Total Drama Island!" Chris grinned. The host with the most was currently standing on the one and only dock to the island, which was noticeably in rough shape. "It's time to meet our twenty-two campers." A boat pulled up to the dock and a teenager walked off. "Everyone, meet TenTen!"

TenTen was a friendly looking girl in black jeans and a plain white t-shirt. Noticeably her hair was in two buns. She gave Chris a friendly wave.

"Welcome," Chris greeted her warmly, "are you excited to be here?"

"I'm ready to kick some butt," TenTen said firmly, "I can't wait to get started!"

**TenTen: Total Drama Stereotype – The Blackbelt.**

"Excellent! That's the kind of excitement I like to see." Chris shot her finger guns. "Go stand on the end of the Dock while the others arrive, ok?"

TenTen nodded and walked to the end of the Dock as the next boat pulled up.

"This is Deidera everyone!"

Deidera had a grey muscle tank splattered in paint and grey cargo shorts, also covered in paint. He had very long blonde hair up in a high ponytail, but some had fallen and was covering his eye, both of which had a slightly crazed look in them.

"Hey hey," Deidera greeted, fingers twitching, "stoked to be here."

**Deidera: Total Drama Stereotype – The Artist.**

"Glad to have you my man, go ahead and wait at the end of the Dock."

Deidera walked over to TenTen and nodded. "Hey."

TenTen nodded back. "Hi! My name is TenTen."

"Wanna see my art?" Deidera asked excitedly, apparently not hearing her introduction.

TenTen looked taken aback and a little hesitant. "Uh...sure?"

Deidera jammed his left hand into his pocket and pulled out a small clay figurine that looked slightly mammalian. He handed to her and she peered at it. "Isn't it just the best thing you've ever seen?!"

"Uh, it's cute, yeah," TenTen offered, handing it back to her.

Deidera beamed at her, "Thank you!" and took back the figurine.

By then the next boat had arrived. "Next up, we have Kiba!"

Off the boat stepped a tough looking boy. He had a red tattoo of a fang on each cheek and a grey hoodie on despite the summer weather. He also had on old jeans and farmer boots. However, most noticeable about this newcomer was the puppy that was happily perched on top of his head.

"Oi," Kiba said, mildly annoyed, "don't forget to introduce Akamaru, man!"

Chris rolled his eyes. "I'm not introducing a dog."

"Jerk," Kiba muttered, stalking past the host. Akamaru gave a little growl as he passed.

**Kiba: Total Drama Stereotype - The Dog Lover.**

"You're lucky I even let that mutt on the show," Chris pointed out, "so watch it." He put two fingers to his eyes and then flicked them at Kiba.

"Yeah yeah," Kiba rolled his eyes and walked over to the other two. "Yo."

"Oh my gosh, your dog is so cute!" TenTen gushed.

"Cute indeed," Deidera agreed, "you must let me sculpt him!" He dug into his right pocket and pulled out a wad of clay. He then turned his back to the others and began mashing the clay together, muttering excitedly under his breath.

Kiba raised an eyebrow at TenTen, but she just shrugged.

Boat four pulled up. Out stepped a black girl with fiery red hair. It seemed her temper was fiery as well, because she hollered back at the boat driver. "Oh look! We made it before I died of old age! I guess miracles _do_ happen!'

As a response the boat driver hurled her luggage out after her, which she caught in the face.

"Welcome Karui," Chris chuckled, "problem with your driver?"

**Karui: Total Drama Stereotype - The Hothead.**

"There's a problem alright, that dude was a freaking _moron_." Karui spat, adjusting her lime green crop top and making sure her white bandana was on straight. "I can't believe you'd hire such terrible drivers.'

Chris just shrugged, "we just got the cheapest ones we could find," he admitted, "go over there." He pointed to the end of the Dock.

Karui scoffed and stalked off as boat number five arrived.

"Welcome, Sakura!"

Sakura was a pretty, pale young woman with long, light pink dyed hair and emerald green eyes. She smiled warmly at everyone as she stepped foot on the dock. She wore a pink sundress with white sneakers.

**Sakura: Total Drama Stereotype - The Romantic.**

"Hello everyone! Great to meet you." She said politely. She walked over to the group and stood next to Karui. She leaned in and whispered, "Man, not a lot of cute guys here, huh?"

Karui glanced at Kiba, who was trying to look cool with a puppy on his head, and Deidera, who was still kneading clay and muttering excitedly to himself under his breath. "Meh, hopefully it goes up from here," Karui admitted, not bothering to whisper.

"Shikamaru, everyone!" Chris announced.

Shikamaru was a lanky young Asian man with a very bored look on his face. His long black hair was tied up in a spiky ponytail and he wore a maroon flannel over a plain white t-shirt with denim jeans and matching maroon chucks. He stifled a yawn through his fingers and grunted out a greeting.

**Shikamaru: Total Drama Stereotype - The Slacker.**

Karui laughed. "Yikes, maybe they won't get better."

"Welcome to the island," Chris told Shikamaru. "Excited to be here?"

"Not really," Shikamaru drawled as he walked down the dock, his voice deeper than expected from someone of his stature, "I'm only here because my mom wanted me out of the house for the summer."

Kiba let out a bark of laughter. "Damn dude, chill. You're gonna overwork the ladies with how cool you are."

Shikamaru stared dully at him. "You've got a little doggie on your head and think you can lecture me about coolness? What a drag." He turned away from Kiba, leaving him fuming.

Chris chuckled. "Excellent! Dramatic interactions bring in the ratings," he told the camera, "and the higher the ratings, the more cold hard cash I make! It's win-win!"

"Doesn't really sound like it's a win for us," TenTen muttered as the next camper arrived.

Said camper was female and very attractive. She had long, long blonde hair down to her bottom and wore a fairly revealing deep purple tank top with short white jean shorts. She also had purple sandals and a confident smirk on her face.

"This is Ino, everyone!"

"Hey, everyone," Ino said cheerfully, "I'm so looking forward to this!"

**Ino: Total Drama Stereotype – The Model.**

She walked down the dock, and every movement she made suggested she knew how attractive she was. She stopped next to Kiba and gave a high-pitched squeal. "What a cute little puppy! What's his name?"

Kiba grinned at her, "that there is Akamaru. I'm Kiba."

"Nice to meet you!" Ino squealed, mostly to the dog. She reached out a hand and scratched him under the chin.

Kiba blushed but tried to maintain his cool. "Nice to meet you too!"

"Pfft," Karui muttered, "skank."

Ino didn't seem to hear, as she turned to Sakura instead. "Oh my gosh, I love your outfit!"

Sakura beamed, "thank you! I love your hair!"

"Aw, stop it!"

"No, you stop!"

TenTen rolled her eyes and Shikamaru let out an audible groan, but Chris was there to move things along.

"Here's Bee, everyone!"

Out stepped a very fashionably dressed young black man. He had on a two piece white suit with matching hat, and dark black sunglasses. He swirled around and gave Chris finger guns. "Yo, Chris, what up my man?"

"Welcome to the island!" Chris greeted.

"Thanks man, it's great to be here. But ya'll got stuff to fear, danger is near, cause Bee will smear...the competition," he rapped.

**Bee: Total Drama Stereotype – The Rapper.**

These unprecedented bars were met by silence from the other campers.

"Did you just rap?" Karui asked rudely. "Because that was awful."

"My sweet lady, beautiful you may be, but hard of hearing I see," Bee continued to say, stalking down the dock to the others.

"Stay away from me," Karui spat, eyebrow twitching.

"Sheesh, whatever you say." Bee muttered, sliding over to Shikamaru and Kiba. "What up brothers from other mothers?"

"Yo," Kiba said indifferently. Shikamaru ignored him.

Further conversation was interrupted by a loud "WOOHOO!" coming from the next boat. Before the boat had even come to a stop, a young man jumped from the stern and landed cleanly on the dock. He had short blonde hair, blue eyes, and a revolting orange tracksuit on.

"Welcome, Naruto! Love the enthusiasm!" Chris told him.

"You guys better be prepared to lose, cause I'm winning this whole thing!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly. There was no trace of malice or confrontation in his voice, which struck the others as odd.

**Naruto: Total Drama Stereotype – The Knucklehead.**

"Good luck, cause you'll have to go through me!" Kiba said, much harsher than Naruto had.

"And me," Karui added, "I doubt those lanky arms are too much to be worried about."

Naruto just brushed off the confrontational words and laughed heartily. "Just you guys wait and see! I got this." He went over and stood next to Shikamaru. "What's up dude? Sick hair!"

Shikamaru just stared at him dully. "Thanks," he drawled.

"What's your name?"

"Do you even care?"

Naruto looked hurt. "Of course I do! C'mon, don't be such a downer."

The slacker rolled his eyes but gave his name nonetheless. "Shikamaru."

"HAH!" Naruto's shout of laughter made Shikamaru jump. "Shikamaru? What kind of name is that? I can't tell if I like it."

Shikamaru chose not to respond and instead fixed his eyes on the next boat.

Out of said boat stepped an Asian girl with short black hair and a determined look on her face. She had on a black flannel over a grey tee-shirt with farmer jeans and large boots.

"Kurotsuchi, everyone!"

Kurotsuchi waved at everyone. "Hey," she greeted casually. She received some greetings and headed over to stand next to Deidera.

**Kurotsuchi: Total Drama Stereotype – The Tomboy.**

"Whatcha doing?" She asked the artist, trying to peer over his shoulder.

"It's almost finished," Deidera muttered, "I'll show you soon."

Kurotsuchi took a step back. "Riiiight...okay then, I'm gonna go over there." She went to stand next to TenTen.

"Camper number eleven is Tayuya!"

Tayuya was a rough looking girl with scraggly red hair. She had on a muscle shirt with a skull and crossbones on it, and ripped up jeans. Everything about her screamed "punk", from the three piercings in her nose to the black lipstick on her face.

"Sup," she sneered, stepping out onto the dock.

**Tayuya: Total Drama Stereotype – The Bully.**

"Yikes, what is that mess?" Ino whispered to Sakura, who giggled.

"You say something, pretty girl?" Tayuya snapped, making Ino jump.

"No, nothing to you," Ino replied quickly, annoyed. "Are you always so nosy?"

Tayuya walked lazily over to Ino and stood five inches from her face. "Watch your mouth when you speak to me, _girlie_."

Ino, overwhelmed by Tayuya's aggressive approach, backed down. "Just get out of my face," she muttered, looking away.

Tayuya smirked triumphantly and went to stand next to Naruto, who scooted away from her.

"The power of youth compels me!" Came a shriek from the latest boat. A young boy with a revolting bowl cut came springing out, landing on the dock with a perfect somersault.

"Lee, everyone!"

"It is a great honor to meet you all!" Lee said, saluting.

**Lee: Total Drama Stereotype – Mr. Motivation.**

"What's up dude!" Naruto called. "My name is Naruto, and I'm gonna WIN this show!"

Lee shot Naruto a blinding grin and bounded over to him, "such fierce words! You will make a most honorable competitor!"

Naruto grinned back and, just as eloquently said "I'll kick your butt too, believe it!"

"Done!" Deidera said loudly, startling those around him. "Kiba, check out this, hn!"

Kiba walked over and looked at what Deidera had. It was a small clay puppy. It was rough, but had a certain charm to it.

"Hey, that's pretty good," Kiba grinned, taking it from the artists hand. "Whaddya think, Akamaru?"

Akamaru leaned down and gave the figure a quick sniff. The puppy gave it a quick lick and wagged his tail, and Kiba pocketed. "I'd say he likes it."

Deidera beamed, "thank you!"

The camera shifted back to the next boat, where a lovely looking young woman with long purple hair. Her bulky sweatshirt hid her nice figure and you could tell just by the way she walked how shy she was.

"This is Hinata, everyone!"

Hinata nervously gave a little wave. "H-hello everyone," she muttered, "it's nice to meet you!"

**Hinata: Total Drama Stereotype – The Wallflower.**

"Oi, aren't you hot?" Naruto called from the growing crowd of teens, "it's summer and you're wearing a sweatshirt! What's up with that?"

Hinata blushed at that and tried to stammer out an answer, but she was saved by Sakura jamming an elbow into his ribs.

"Hey!" the pinkette barked, "it's not nice to comment on a girl's outfit!"

Naruto yelped and rubbed his sore ribs, "I didn't mean any harm," he grumbled.

By then, Hinata had joined the crowd and the next boat had arrived.

"This is Sai, everyone!" Chris announced.

Out stepped a very pale boy with short black hair. He wearing a peculiar outfit of a black crop-top and farmer jeans with farmer boots.

"Nice _outfit_, loser," Tayuya mocked, causing a couple sniggers to run through the group.

Sai, however, just fixed her with a smile. "It seems your personality and face match, Ugly."

**Sai: Total Drama Stereotype – The Sheltered One.**

This caused several _ooh's_ to echo through the group, and Tayuya went red with anger. She pushed her way to the front of the group and went for Sai, but Naruto and Lee held her back.

"Easy," Lee told her, "he was merely matching you jibe for jibe. Please do not sink to violence!"

Tayuya shrugged out of their grips, but didn't pursue Sai. "Don't tell me what to, Bowl Cut," she spat.

Sai joined them at the group while Chris counted them up.

"Only eight of you left to introduce," Chris noted, turning to the next boat and seeing who stepped off it.

This girl was tall and tan, with short, sandy blonde hair tied into four pigtails. She wore a white dress shirt with black skinny jeans and looked well put together. Her expression was unamused.

"This place is a dump," were her first words.

"Nice to meet you too, Temari!"

"Hn."

**Temari: Total Drama Stereotype – The Perfectionist.**

"So this is my competition?" Temari asked as she walked slowly down the dock. Her eyes slid over the faces of the other teens. "Should be an interesting game."

Karui smirked, "you know it!"

Temari stood next to Kurotsuchi and Bee as the next boat pulled up.

The next young man was very quiet. He had a bizarre collared shirt that covered his mouth and nose and dark sunglasses on. His tattered jeans and messy hair gave him a bit of an unnerving appearance.

"This is Shino, everyone!" Chris said, trying not to look creeped out as they kid walked by him.

**Shino: Total Drama Stereotype – The Insectophile.**

"Greetings, everyone," Shino's voice was surprisingly soft, "it is an honor to be competing alongside all of you. I expect your best efforts in defeating me."

"You say that like it's gonna be tough," Shikamaru yawned, eyeing the newcomer warily.

"Tougher than you might think," Shino said, his sunglasses glinting.

"Hm, I like this kid," Kurotsuchi grinned. She stuck her hand out to him. "My name is Kurotsuchi, nice to meet ya!"

Shino extended his hand and shook hers. "Nice to meet you too," he said politely.

He was then accosted by Naruto and Lee, who introduced themselves as well.

While those shenanigans were going on, yet another boat pulled up.

"This is Karin."

Karin was a nerdy looking young woman with shocking red hair to rival Karui's. She was bespectacled and wore very plain clothes – a lilac shirt with a pocket on the chest and khaki shorts with black sneakers.

She pushed her glasses up her nose a bit and surveyed everyone. "Hello, everyone."

**Karin: Total Drama Stereotpye – The Geek.**

"What's up, _nerd_?" Tayuya mocked, chuckling. No one else laughed.

Karin seemed unfazed, and walked over to stand next to Hinata.

"H-hello," Hinata mumbled, "nice to meet you, I'm Hinata..."

"Yes yes, pleasantries are nice," Karin said brusquely, "hope your day is going well and such." She turned her attention to the approaching boat.

Hinata sighed a little and looked down to the floor, embarrassed by the dismissal. **  
**

Off the next boat stepped a very muscular, intimidating young man. He was so pale his skin was almost blue, and he had sharp, beady eyes. His hair was so black it almost looked blue and he wore a black muscle tee and dark denim jeans. He also had on a pair of nice hiking boots.

"This is Kisame, everyone!"

Kisame grinned at the crowd, showing sharp teeth. Contrary to his looks, when he opened his mouth his words were courteous and eloquent. "Greetings everyone. _So_ pleased to make your acquaintance."

**Kisame: Total Drama Sterotype - The Athlete.**

"Whoa, you are _ripped_." Ino said approvingly.

"Yes," Sai nodded, "he's a jock. A meathead."

Kisame threw back his head and let out a loud laugh. He walked over to Sai and threw an arm around his shoulder. "I can see why you would think that, pale one," he removed his arm from around Sai's shoulder but, quick as a flash, he had grabbed the front of his shirt and lifted him up off the dock with just one arm. "But I think you'll soon find your observation to be _quite_ wrong."

"Hey!" Temari protested, pushing through the crowd to get to Kisame. "Put. Him. _Down_." She said sternly.

Kisame laughed again and released the boy, who, to his credit, landed gracefully on his feet. "Easy now, Pigtails, I wasn't hurting him."

"Yeah, but you could've damaged his crop top, and that would've been a _tragedy_." TenTen giggled, making a couple others chuckle.

Kisame grinned at her and took his place on the Dock while another boat pulled up.

"Our nineteenth contestant, Konan!"

Konan was a pretty girl dressed in all black. Like, _all _black. From her tanktop to her hoodie to her jeans, shoes and makeup. Her hair, however, was a deep, dyed purple. She had even more piercings than Tayuya.

"Say hi, Konan!" Chris said obnoxiously.

Konan shot him a glare and said nothing. She stalked over to the crowd.

**Konan: Total Drama Stereotpye – The Goth.**

"Hey," Sakura said, trying to be friendly to the newcomer, "I'm Sakura!"

Konan looked at her and sighed heavily, as if just talking to her was a huge inconvenience. "Hi, I guess."

Sakura didn't really know how to respond to that, so she just sort of smiled and looked awkwardly at the next boat.

"Yay, hi everyone!" Came the chirpy voice of the newest camper. The girl was tan and pretty, with a high-school cheerleader uniform of light spring green, which matched her hair. Her midriff was showing and she had startling orange eyes.

**Fu: Total Drama Stereotype – The Cheerleader.**

"Welcome Fu," Chris greeted warmly, "excited to be here?"

"You know it," Fu grinned, walking over to the others, "this is gonna be such a fun summer, I can't wait!" She fell to talking with Ino and Sakura as the last boat pulled up.

"Our last two contestants," Chris announced, "are arriving on the same boat!"

"Why's that?" Naruto asked, scratching his forehead.

"Because they're brothers, and we could save a little money this way," Chris told the knucklehead, "we _are _on a budget, y'know."

The boat stopped and out stepped two startlingly handsome young men.

The shorter of the two, a boy in fashionable street-wear with messy hair and bangs, walked out onto the Dock with a displeased look on his face.

"Really, we had to share the same boat?" his voice was smooth.

"Welcome, Sasuke," Chris greeted, ignoring the young man's complaint.

**Sasuke: Total Drama Stereotype – The Cool Guy.**

Sasuke pushed his bangs out of his eyes in a tired fashion and surveyed the other contestants.

"Oh my god," Sakura whispered to Ino, "he is _so_ hot!"

"I know!" Ino squealed, not nearly as subtle as Sakura, "what's up, cutie!" She called to him, waving.

Sasuke saw Ino waving and sighed, rolling his eyes. A chuckle came from right behind him as the other brother walked up to him. "Happening already, huh little brother?"

"Just call me Sasuke," Sasuke muttered, embarrassed.

The other boy just chuckled.

**Itachi: Total Drama Stereotype – The Pacifist.**

Itachi's hair was dark like his brothers, but it was much longer and kept in a ponytail. He also had noticeable lines running down his cheeks, and a kind face. He dressed in a simple green hoodie with jeans and regular sneakers.

One thing of note about the two of them, though, was that Sasuke's fashionable shirt and Itachi's plain hoodie both sported the same crest on the back, something that Shino took note of.

"The Uchiha crest, huh?" The strange boy's sunglasses glinted in the sunlight, "what do a couple of richy-riches like you need with a hundred grand?"

"I knew I recognized that symbol," Karin agreed, "though I doubt they're here for the monetary gain."

Sasuke stared at her, causing her to blush. "You're right about that," he told her, bored. He went over and stood as far from a still squealing Ino and Sakura as possible, and ended up next to Naruto.

"Yo!" Naruto greeted loudly, making Sasuke flinch, "so you're a rich boy, huh?" he gave a friendly grin, "that'll make it more satisfying when I beat you!"

Sasuke did not take the jibe lightly and glared at the blonde, "Funny, because I'll be the one beating you."

"Hah!" Naruto cackled right in his face, "nice try, bub, but I'm gonna be the winner of this show!"

Sasuke was about to fire back a heated reply but was cut off by Chris. "Alright, that's everyone! Now, if you twenty-two teens will follow me, I'm going to give you all a little tour of this island!" The host walked off the dock and towards the bulk of the island. The others followed.

* * *

The island was fairly small. In the center was a long, wooden building dubbed "The Mess Hall" by Chris. That was where the campers would eat their meals three times a day. Inside was simple; two long tables with benches. In the back there was a kitchen counter where they would be served food cafeteria-style from a scary looking ex-con that went by "Chef".

About a hundred paces north of the Mess Hall were two beat-up log cabins. Each cabin had a porch and had two sides to it. Each team would get a cabin, Chris explained, and then within the cabin boys would get one side and girls the other.

The Dock of Shame was located on the very south part of the island, and right when you stepped off of it was the elimination area. It was eleven large logs made into seats and a gloomy looking oil barrel.

On the north side of the island was a massive hill that lead to a cliff and fifty-foot drop into the chilly water below.

The island also had a large lake on the west side, complete with its own separate dock and boathouse.

There were several other buildings on the island, but were for challenge use and therefore not shown to the contestants yet.

* * *

The group of kids were currently at the elimination area. Chris was there too, holding two rolled up cloth banners, one under each arm. "Alright campers, you've got a tour of the island and what goes down at each place except for right here," he gestured with his head to the oil barrel behind him. "I'm going to split you guys into two teams of eleven. You will then compete in challenges, and the losing team will have to come here and vote off one of their fellow teammates. If you do get eliminated, you will have to walk down the Dock of Shame and you can't come back, _ever_! Does anyone have any questions?"

Shikamaru raised a hand, "do we get any say in who our teammates are?"

"Nope!"

The lazy boy sighed, "what a drag..."

"So, let's split you guys up. When I call you name, come stand to my right:

Kurotsuchi...

Lee...

Ino...

Itachi...

Naruto...

Bee...

Hinata...

TenTen...

Sai...

Kisame...

and Karui!"

The eleven teens walked over to Chris's right. Notably, Ino looked upset that Sasuke had not been called and Sasuke looked very relieved he had _not_ been called.

"I dub you guys the Fierce Foxes," Chris told them, tossing the red banner to Kisame, who caught it easily. He unrolled it to see a drawing of a confident looking red fox on a slightly darker background.

"Foxes, huh? Always liked foxes," Naruto grinned.

"And we are so totally fierce!" Karui smirked, "I like it," she surveyed her teammates and then the others, "we'll make sure to kick some serious ass."

"That means the rest of you guys are on team two," Chris continued,

"Shikamaru...

Kiba...

Konan...

Sasuke...

Shino...

Tayuya...

Temari...

Fu...

Sakura...

Deidera...

and Karin, you guys are now dubbed the Rampaging Rhinos!" He tossed the banner to Tayuya, who caught it. This banner was green, and had an angry looking grey rhino on it.

"Rhinos? I like that..." Deidera muttered, digging into his pockets for some more clay.

"So, size up your competition and your teammates. They will be the _only_ people you'll have contact with other than myself and Chef Hatchet if you plan on staying here for the next eight weeks." Chris told them, tapping his chin, "I feel like I'm forgetting something..." realization dawned on his face, "Oh yeah, the Confessional!"

"The Confessional?" Sai asked, "I'm not religious because I'm not deluded, so I won't be using that."

That got him a couple weird looks, but Chris just laughed. "No, Sai, the Confessional is a place where you can vent to the viewers without any of your fellow campers overhearing you."

The camera cut to a disgusting looking outhouse. Taped to the open door was a camera. "It really is a great piece of craftsmanship," Chris sighed.

* * *

**(Confessional: Chris.)**

Chris grinned at the camera, "so make sure you use this to its full potential. Complain or compliment, moan or groan, it's here for your venting needs!"

**(End Confessional: Chris)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

Naruto looked around the Confessional and then at the camera. "So far, this place _rules_! The people are pretty great too, and I can't wait to get to competing!"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)  
**

"The place where we can vent is a disgusting toilet," Konan deadpans, staring straight into the camera, "so far, this place sucks."

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Ino.)**

"How come Sasuke can't be on my team," Ino complained, "We'd be the most gorgeous couple on the island! It'll be so hard to hook up with him now that we're enemies!" She gave a slight gasp, "ooh, maybe it'll be just like Romeo and Juliet!"

**(End Confessional: Ino.)**

* * *

"So, go get settled in your cabins and unpack. Lunch will be in one hour, and your challenge after that." Chris told them, shooing them away with his hands, "now get! Your luggage was dropped outside your cabins."

The twenty two teens dispersed towards the cabins.

* * *

Currently the six Fox boys: Naruto, Lee, Bee, Itachi, Kisame and Sai, were unpacking in their side of the cabin. There were only three bunk beds in the cabin, so they had to pick beds. Naruto got the bottom bunk on the bed closest to the door, with Lee above him. Sai had the bottom bunk in the middle bed, with Itachi above him, and Kisame and Bee had the bottom and top respectively of the farthest bed.

"Alright guys, how excited are you?" Naruto said gleefully, unpacking his suitcase messily onto his bed.

"Extremely excited!" Lee hooted, grinning exuberantly, "I have been waiting for a competition like this for a long time, and I do not plan on losing!"

"Tch, that's a shame," Bee cut in, grinning cockily, "because I'm gonna be the one to blame when I _win_ this whole game."

"Hah!" Naruto interjected, practically shouting, "you think you're gonna win, that's hilarious!"

As the three loud boys continued to prattle on, Itachi was calmly unloading his suitcase into the drawers across the room. Sai was next to him doing the same, and both were silent.

"So," Kisame said, walking up to the two raven-haired men, "looks like I've got three quite boisterous cabinmates and two quiet ones."

Itachi looked at Kisame, "I speak when needed, but I don't see the need for senseless conversation."

Kisame eyed the Uchiha, "fair enough." he grinned, "at the very least our team isn't lacking in confidence." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder to Lee, Naruto, and Bee, who were now all shouting about why they would win the whole show, "we've got _three_ winners on our team, no way we can lose."

"They're idiots," Sai decided, looking disdainfully at the three, "I don't like them."

"You're awfully blunt," Itachi noted, eying Sai curiously.

Said nodded, smiling, "yes, I've always had trouble veiling my true feelings."

"I'd be careful," Itachi warned, "some of the people here may not take too kindly to hearing your honest opinion."

"I'll gratefully take that advice in one ear and out the other," Sai told him, still smiling.

Itachi and Kisame were silent for a second, until Kisame burst out laughing. Itachi just shook his head and took his leave.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

Kisame was grinning, "That kid Sai is a train wreck. I wonder how long it'll be until he pisses off the wrong people."

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

The Fox Girls were also unpacking. They also had three bunk beds, but since there were only five of them one of them wouldn't have to share.

"I don't mind sharing," TenTen said, "one of you guys can have the solo."

"I don't care either," Kurotsuchi said, looking at TenTen, "wanna bunk?"

"Sure," TenTen shrugged, pointing to the bed furthest back, "that one?"

"Sounds good to me."

"I want the solo," Ino said, "I like, _need_ my space."

"Why should you get it?" Karui challenged immediately, "I want it."

"Let's have a contest then," Ino said devilishly, "we can go ask all the boys on the island who is the prettiest out of the two of us and whoever wins gets the bunk!"

Karui blinked, "that's ridiculous! What kind of stupid challenge is that?"

"Yeah," TenTen added from her bunk, "why not do something easier like rock-paper-scissors?"

The two looked to TenTen and then back at each other. Sparks flew between their eyes as they glared at one another.

"Two out of three?" Karui challenged.

"You're on!"

Both girls cocked back their fists. "Rock, paper, scissors SHOOT!"

Ino threw out paper, while Karui had a rock.

"Hah!" Ino cried, "in your face!"

"It's still two out of three!" Karui yelled back, "Don't get cocky!"

The process repeated, but this time Ino had rock, and Karui had scissors.

"I'll be cocky all I want," Ino taunted, "thanks for the bunk!"

Karui let out a screech and leapt at the girl, but TenTen and Kurotsuchi held her back.

"It's just a bunk, girl!" Kurotsuchi barked, "it's not worth it!"

"Besides," Hinata spoke up, timidly, "I don't mind bunking with you, Karui."

Karui stopped struggling and sighed. "Fine."

"Look at us, all getting along," TenTen said sarcastically, turning away from the girls to continue unpacking.

"Well, one thing is for sure," Ino's voice was practically a purr, "there are some_ cute_ boys here."

Kurotsuchi nodded. "Those Uchiha books hit the jackpot for sure. Super rich _and_ super hot."

"Kisame's not bad either," TenTen added thoughtfully.

"He's ripped for sure," Ino agreed. "He's got a bit of a bad boy vibe." She turned to Hinata, "what about you? Any cute guys catch you eye?"

Hinata turned bright red. "U-u-um...I-I, uh..." she bolted from the room.

The four other girls watched her leave, bemused.

"She's weird." Kurotsuchi observed.

"She's just shy," TenTen said, "give her time to warm up to us."

* * *

**(Confessional: TenTen.) **

"Having cute boys here is great and all," TenTen says, "but I'm here to win. If a boy happens to fall into my lap then great, but what I'm really drooling over is that one-hundred thousand dollars!"

**(End Confessional: TenTen.)**

* * *

"Man, this place is such a drag."

The five Rhino boys were, like everyone else, unpacking.

"You got your optimal bunk, so quit whining." Kiba said dismissively.

It was true. Shikamaru had the bottom bunk of the closest cabin, with Sasuke above him. The middle bunk had Kiba and Deidera, and the far bunk had Shino to himself.

"I am so ready to kick this competition in the butt," Kiba continued, puffing out his chest and thumping it. Akamaru, who was curled up on the sheets of his bed, gave a little yip of agreement.

Sasuke looked irked by the yip and turned to face Kiba. "That dog doesn't bark alot, does he?"

"Not unless I tell him to, no." Kiba shrugged, annoyed with Sasuke's annoyance.

"Good, cause I don't want that little rat keeping me up. I need the sleep to crush this competition."

In a flash Kiba was up in Sasuke's face. "The hell you just call my dog?"

Sasuke didn't back down, and returned Kiba's steely gaze. "You heard me."

Kiba looked like he was about to take a swing at him, but Shino agily slipped between the two and shoved them away from each other.

"You got a problem, Shino?" Sasuke snapped.

Shino turned to look at Sasuke. "I think this hostile attitude would be better directed at thte other team, no? You are here to win, and not squabble like a five year old with people who are on your side, right?"

Sasuke flushed. "You've got some nerve talking to me like that. Do you know who I am? It's-" he was cut off as Shino jabbed a finger in his face.

"It doesn't matter who you are here," Shino said, looking down at the floor. His voice was still quiet. The other three boys watched on, not daring to interrupt. "Here, we all start as equals. The only things that matter here are what you do once you set foot on this island." As he was speaking a beetle crawled out of his sleeve and up his arms, towards Sasuke's face.

"Those who fail to understand this will find themselves back in the real world shortly," Shino smirked, "so if you're so hung up about who you are in the outside world, keep it up. You'll be back there soon enough."

The beetle reached the tip of his finger. Sasuke was staring at the beetle and boy with a nasty mixture of revulsion and anger.

"Whatever," the younger Uchiha scoffed, smacking Shino's hand out of his way and stalking past him. The door slammed shut and the four boys were left in silence.

Kiba broke that silence.

"I like you, man," he grinned, going over to Shino and slinging an arm around him. "I think we'll get along just fine."

Shino was still smirking as the beetle crawled back up his sleeve. "Perhaps."

Meanwhile, Deidera had been frantically working on a clay sculpture.

* * *

**(Confessional: Deidera.)**

"Check this out!" Deidera beams. He pulls out several little clay figurines. They are rough but can be defined as Shino, Sasuke, Kiba and Shikamaru. "I hope to get all of the people here eventually."

**(End Confessional: Deidera.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Sasuke.)**

"That little shit! Who does he think he is, being so arrogant?" Sasuke grumbled, leaning against the wall of the Confessional. He keeps up his anger for a few seconds, but eventually sighs. "I can't say he's wrong though. I gotta keep my cool. I try not to be elitist because of my upbringing, but my parents make that kind of hard." He shakes his head, "whatever, I still have the ability to win this game."

**(End Confessional: Sasuke.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Shino.)**

Shino has a beetle on his thumb and is holding it close to his ear, as if listening to it. "Magnificent creatures, aren't they?" He lowers his hand. "It might be hard to believe, but I was actually giving Sasuke some advice there. He may be arrogant, but he's not an idiot, and is probably a capable competitor. Ideally, he sees that I help him out, and now I have a potential strong ally on the radar. Someone who is likely to be popular with the ladies is invaluable for strategy," he pushes his sunglasses further up his nose, "and I happen to love strategy."

**(End Confessional: Shino.)**

* * *

In the Rhino girl cabin, things were going rather...badly.

"I want the front bed, bitch." Tayuya spat, lifting Konan up by her shirt.

"Whoa, take it easy," Temari barked, walking over to the two and shoving Tayuya away. "There's two beds, you can each have one you psycho."

"I don't even want the front bed," Konan grumbled, snatching up her suitcase and heading towards the back of the cabin.

Temari turned to glare at Tayuya, demanding an explanation, but Tayuya just glared back.

"You really think this is the best way to go about this?" Sakura asked, her hands held up in placating gesture. "I mean, if we lose, we hold the power to vote off who we want. Is being a big jerk the way to go about this."

Tayuya took that in for a moment. Looking like she had sucked on a lemon, she finally spat out. "Shit. You're right. Sorry, gothball."

"Yeah, cause that was sincere." Karin deadpanned up top from the far bunk. Konan, setting up her stuff underneath her, cracked a smile.

"Let's just all try to get along, guys." Fu said brightly, "We've got butts to kick in this first challenge, and I'll be damned if we end up losing!"

That at least, was something all the girls could agree on, and the unpacking continued with no other issues.

* * *

An hour later, Chris called all the contestants in for lunch. One team got a table, so everyone was a little crowded.

"What. The. Hell. Is. This." Karin said, holding up a spoonful of some reddish-brown paste.

"It's LUNCH!" Chef screamed from the kitchen, making most of the campers jump.

One thing the campers learned very quickly was that it was best not to mess with Chef Hatchet, Afro-Canadian and mean. Easily six and a half feet tall and ripped, this ex-con did not put up with _any_ kind of dissent about his cooking.

"I don't know what country you grew up in, _Chef_," Ino snapped, "but this isn't food."

Lee clapped her on the back, making her jump. "We must eat, for we need the nutrients required to perform well in this challenge!" He said vehemently, eyes sparkling.

"Yeah! He's right!" Naruto added obnoxiously, shoveling down the weird paste with gusto.

However, some of the others weren't as keen to eat the 'food'.

"Just let me in the kitchen," Karui said dismissively, getting up and walking towards the door, "I can cook something for myself, I-" she bumped into the massive cook, who was leering down at her. He practically radiated doom.

"Sit. Yo. Butt. _Down_."

Karui was no wimp, but she also wasn't a complete idiot. She sat down.

"Y'all will eat my meals three times a day. I will hear NO complaining, you understand me?" Chef barked at them, still radiating his doom aura.

No one answered, so Chef grabbed a meat cleaver from his cutting board and slammed it into the door frame. He let go, and the blade stuck.

"DO YOU _UNDERSTAND_ ME!?"

"YES CHEF!" All contestants screamed back. (Some in fear, others in anger.)

At this moment Chris walked in, his pearly-white smile dazzling everyone.

"Hey guys, I've seen you gotten cozy with Chef," he let out a chuckle, "you poor souls."

"Real funny," Kiba grumbled.

"Your first challenge starts in fifteen minutes, so eat up!"

A couple of the campers looked like nerves were settling in. Kisame, on the Foxes table, noticed how nervous Hinata looked.

"Don't be worried, little one," he said in a tone that was half mocking, half consoling. "It's our first challenge, how hard can it be?"

"Not too hard," Chris answered him, a devilish smirk forming on his face. "Just make sure you're up on the cliff...in your bathing suits."

The realization of what this meant dawned on the campers, and the place went silent. Eventually, Kisame broke it.

"Oh, _shit_."

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Tayuya, Sasuke, Kiba, Fu, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Sai, Kurotsuchi, Bee, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: N/A.**_

* * *

**Well there it is guys! I hope you enjoy! If any of you are curious to the style of the story and what its themes will be going forward, just search up the first episode of **_**Total Drama Island**_** if you've never seen an episode. This story will be definitely a little more adult than the cartoon. There will be minor sexual themes and moderate to severe language. Probably some blood and injuries too, but nothing even close to gruesome. **

**I WOULD recommend googling pictures of Chris McLean and Chef Hatchet, and maybe Wawanakwa Island, just to get an idea of what the place looks like.**

**So, who do you guys think will make it far, and who's cannon fodder? Let me hear those early predictions! I'll try and update this soon, within the week hopefully if reception is positive!**


	2. Not So Happy Campers, Part Two!

**Whats up guys, it's time for chapter two. This will cover the challenge and first elimination.**

**Before we get into it, a couple of notes.**

**\- Each chapter will be one challenege/elimination.**

**\- Someone pointed out that Karin's stereotype seemed a little off, and they were right. Their stereotype has been changed from "The Scientist" to "The Geek". I'm not super happy with it but Karin was the hardest to get a stereotype from. Neither her outfit nor her dialogue changed, just her stereotype.**

**So, with that being said, let's jump right into it!**

* * *

The twenty two campers found themselves with Chris on the top of the fifty foot cliff in their bathing suits.

"You are not about to make us do what I think you are," Karui snapped.

"Your first challenge," Chris said, ignoring the loudmouth, "is divided into two parts. This is the first part! You all must jump off this 50 foot cliff into the lake below!"

A few people gasped.

"Oh-ho, that's not all," Chris continued, trying and failing to hide his smirk, "if you look down you'll see a ring in the water. That's your target. And _trust_ me, you're gonna want to hit that target."

Some of the campers looked down into the water and saw the ring, which looked to be about 10 feet by 10 feet.

"Dare I ask why we want to hit the target?" Itachi asked cautiously, looking handsome in his stylish black and red swim trunks.

"Well, you see, the waters below have been stocked with man-eating sharks! That ring is almost certainly shark free."

"Almost…?" Karin repeated nervously, looking over the side. She was clad in a brown and

"This is gonna be totally awesome!" Naruto hooted, looking

"You can't seriously expect us to dive into the water with sharks," Temari told Chris, "I mean, I want to win as much as the next guy, but I'm not about to die for a hundred thousand bucks."

"Relax," Chris smirked, "the target is not hard to hit and we had some interns test out the challenge before hand. It's safe…enough."

The campers, unsurprisingly, did not look to comforted by this.

"Now, here is how you win," Chris continued, "for each person that jumps, they score their team a point. The team with the most amount of points gets a major advantage for the second part of the challenge!"

"So we don't have to jump?" Ino asked quickly.

"Nope," Chris told her, "but if you refuse, you'll be labeled a chicken!" He held up a large yellow chicken hat. It was ugly and wobbly and many teens did NOT want that on them. "You'll have to wear it for the rest of the day, and risk the ire of your teammates."

The campers were silent as they digested all this information.

"Alright, Foxes, you're up first."

There was dead silence on the Foxes. They all looked awkwardly at each other. "Uh…does anyone want to go first?"

"Alright, I'll do it!" Naruto spoke up, stepping forwards. He looked a little nervous, but masked it well with his usual boyish excitement.

"First he will go, down to the ocean below, can't swim slow….yeah," Bee narrated as Naruto walked up to the edge, tugging on his orange trunks.

"Alright guys, wish me luck!" Naruto told his teammates. He took a deep breath, took two steps back, and then leapt over the side. "Wooo-hooo-hoooo!"

Most of the contestants ran to the side of the cliff to see the gonzo boy's fate. There was a large splash as he landed in the safe zone, and emerged with a loud cheer. "That was awesome!" He cheered.

"Did you see any sharks?!" Kurotsuchi bellowed down to him.

"No, I didn't fart!" Naruto screamed back, unable to hear her properly due to the distance between them.

"He's going to kick the park?" Kurotsuchi repeated to her teammates back on land, confused.

Itachi shrugged, "he seems to be fine, though."

"Indeed," Kisame agreed, sweeping his massive arms around him to shoo his teammates away from the edge of the cliff. "I'll go next."

Meanwhile, a crappy motorboat had arrived down in the lake below, driven by Chef Hatchet. The huge man hoisted Naruto out of the water and tossed him onto the boat. They drove off a little way to wait for the next man to join.

Kisame was up top, his toes sticking out over the edge as he looked down.

"Chickening out?" Tayuya mocked from the other team.

Kisame turned to look at her, "On the contrary, I've always loved water." He gave her a sarcastic little wave before leaping off, but since he was so close to the edge the ground crumbled and he stumbled, driving him way off course from his initial jump. He landed about twenty yards from the safe zone, and many of the campers up top gasped in horror.

"Swim!" TenTen yelled from down below, "get to the boat!"

"What an idiot," Sai observed from above, he turned to Chris. "If he gets eaten will we have to vote someone off if we lose?"

TenTen glared at the pale boy as Chris chuckled. "'I'm afraid so, Sai."

However, down in the water, things were going rather…smoothly. True, the sharks had been alerted to Kisame's large form crashing into the water, and one of the sharks curiously swam towards Kisame.

Kisame, still underwater, stared at the shark, a little incredulous. The shark eyed him for a few seconds, then backed off a little. It continued to stare at him as the big man surfaced and got picked up by the boat.

"Dude!" Naruto exclaimed as Kisame boarded, "you ok? Did you see a shark!?"

"I did, but I stayed calm and it ignored me." The athlete grinned. He turned his attention back up to the cliff. "I hope everyone else is capable of jumping."

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

Kisame grins, his pointy teeth giving him a rather shark-like grin, ironically. "I've always been fond of sharks. You have to respect their brutal ways. Looks like the feeling is mutual." He chuckles darkly.

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

"Well, he's not dead and he missed…maybe Chris was lying about the sharks?" Karui suggested, her tone a little hopeful.

"Do they still get a point even if Kisame missed the safe zone?" Sasuke asked the host.

"Yup," Chris nodded, "the point is given for jumping. The safe zone is just an added bonus." A pale blur blitzed by him. This blur turned out to be Lee, in a rather shocking tight green speedo. He gave a big thumbs up to his teammates. "Sharks or no sharks, I am confident I will succeed!" He gave his teammates a reassuring smile.

Ino was holding back laughter at Lee's rather ridiculous swimsuit, and Hinata had turned a bright crimson and covered her face.

"Just jump already, dude," TenTen muttered, averting her eyes.

"With pleasure!" Lee leapt off and landed in the safe zone.

Spurred on by three successes, TenTen and Kurotsuchi followed the three boys over the edge.

"This is bad," Temari noted from the Rhinos, "almost half their team have jumped and no chickens…" she surveyed her own team, "we might be in trouble…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kiba asked, offended. He thumped his chest, "no way I'm chickening out!"

"Yeah!" Tayuya added, leering at the rest of the team, "I'd feel bad if anyone were to _lose_ us the challenge by _chickening _out."

Most of the Rhinos gulped.

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)**

Konan sighs, "Tayuya gets people to do what she wants by using fear and violence. It's not super fun to deal with, but you can't deny that it's effective." She shrugs, "and effectiveness will bring the team to victory, or whatever." She rolls her eyes.

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

"I…I don't know if I can jump," Hinata admitted, looking down over the cliff.

"Well, there's no way I'm jumping." Ino said haughtily. She flicked her long, beautiful hair with a hand and tutted. "My hair will get destroyed by the saltwater."

"You're not jumping because of your stupid hair?" Sai asked, looking a little surprised, "that's pretty lame."

Ino growled at him.

"Actually, I'm with him for once," Karui agreed, "you came to an island summer camp competition and didn't think you'd get your hair in the ocean once?"

"Look, if it was more dire, I'd do it," Ino said, already walking away from the edge. "Trust me, I'm a serious competitor, but you guys got this. Ten points should be enough to beat them."

Chris stopped her as she walked by him. "Forgetting something?" He asked with a cheeky grin. Ino stared at him blankly, but the blank stare soon became horrified when he held up the hideous chicken hat. "Remember, you have to wear this for the rest of the day!"

Ino blanched and hurtled herself back the other way, leaping off the cliff into the water below. She ran so fast she smacked Bee in the mouth with her long hair.

* * *

**(Confessional: Ino.)**

A still damp Ino shivers in her rather skimpy two piece, and her long hair is piled up in a messy bun. "Yeah, getting my hair wet sucked, but did you SEE that chicken hat?! If I wore that those pictures would be on the internet like, forever!" She shakers her head. "No way."

**(End Confessional: Ino.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Bee.)**

Bee is picking long blond hairs out of his mouth. "Blech!"

**(End Confessional: Bee.)**

* * *

"Well," Itachi remarked with a slight smile as he prepared himself to jump, "that's one way to get it done."

"Way to help the other team, jerk!" Kiba shook his fist at the host.

Itachi splashed into the water below, right into the safe zone.

Only Bee, Hinata and Sai remained.

"Well," Sai looked down the cliff, "I'm not doing this. I don't have a death wish like the rest of these psychos."

"Everyone has literally been fine, don't wine you swine." Bee pointed out.

"Keep your crappy raps to yourself, I don't wanna hear it." Sai told him, walking over to Chris, who put the hideous chicken hat on his head.

"Head down to the beach to meet up with the others," Chris told him, and he nodded.

Bee and Hinata, the last two Foxes up there, eyed each other.

"See ya down there, girl," Bee grinned, "YEAAAAAAH!" He leapt off the cliff into the water.

Now it was just Hinata up there, still unsure if she was going to jump.

The Rhinos all looked at her and, sensing weakness, began to taunt her.

"Probably smart not to jump," Karin said loudly, "I wouldn't want to get torn limb from limb in a horrendous fashion."

"Can you imagine if my bathing suit came off after the impact of the water?! I'd be so mortified I might have to quit," Fu added, an impish grin on her face.

Hinata gave a little eep and looked down at her one piece, which failed to fully hide her considerable chest. She pushed her pointer fingers together as the Rhinos continued their verbal torment, not jumping but not giving up just yet.

* * *

The nine Foxes that had jumped were currently on the boat looking up at Hinata.

"She hasn't jumped yet," Itachi observed.

"C'mon, we need her to." Karui said, "motivate her!"

"C'mon, Hinata!" Lee shouted, pumping a fist in the air, "we believe in you!"

"Do it for the team!" TenTen cheered, "we need to win this first challenge!"

None of this was really getting to Hinata due to the distance between them, but a certain boisterous boy had a solution for that.

"C'MON, HINATA!" Naruto bellowed, startling most of the other on the boat with him. "YOU GOT THIS! I BELIEVE IN YOU!"

Well, _that_ had certainly reached the nervous girl, and she swallowed nervously as her cheeks reddened. "I…I Can do this," she said to herself. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and jumped before she lost her nerve. She screamed as she fell, but crashed harmlessly into the safe zone. She emerged to cheers from her team as the boat paddled over to her.

"Nice going!" Naruto grinned as he reached down to help her into the boat. "We'll get 100% of us jumping now!"

Hinata shivered on the boat, a little chilly. "Um…Sai didn't want to jump. He's coming down now with a chicken hat."

This caused a few grumbles, but Lee was quick to console. "Fear not friends, 10 out of 11 is still great! I am confident in our odds."

This settled most of the grumbles, though Karui looked annoyed and Kisame had an eyebrow raised.

* * *

**(Confessional: Sai.)**

Saw flicks at the wobbly chicken hat, annoyed. "So far this show is not what I expected it to be. Everyone here is rather annoying and the challenges seem dangerous and not suited to what I can do." He sighs.

**(End Confessional: Sai.)**

* * *

The Rhinos were looking at each other, now that Chris had given them the go-ahead on jumping.

"I'll go first then," Temari said, thinking that one person jumping would make the rest of the team less apprehensive, "but you all better jump! We're winning this challenge." She turned and dove off, heading down into the safe zone.

Kiba stepped up next.

"Wait!" Deidera said, looking around, "where's Akamaru?"

"He's chilling in the cabin," Kiba told him. "This sounded dangerous so I didn't want the little guy to get hurt. He's fine there."

"As long as he doesn't pee on my bed," Sasuke grumbled, and Kiba glared at him.

"Keep talking and I might just tell him to," the dogboy snapped, heading to the edge. He let out a hoot as he fell into the water below.

"Me next!" Fu chirped, leaping down into the water below. She landed perfectly in the safe zone.

"I..I don't know if I can do this," Sakura whimpered, eyeing down the cliff in her pink two-piece swimsuit.

"Move over, wimp." Tayuya grumbled, pushing Sakura away. "The rest of you better not chicken out," she barked, eyeing Sakura in particular. She leapt down into the water, but crashed outside the safe zone.

"Hurry up!" Temari barked from the boat with the three others. The Foxes has been relocated to the beach. Sure enough, a shark fin was cresting the water and heading right towards Tayuya.

"Oh my gosh!" Fu whimpered, gripping the sides of the boat. "Hurry up!"

Tayuya swam towards the boat as the shark got closer. "Oh screw this!" She snapped, whirling around and punching the approaching shark in the jaw.

Temari, Kiba and Fu all screamed in terror as the shark reared up, alarmed by the punch. Tayuya took this temporary distraction to swim the rest of the way back up to the boat. She was pulled in by Temari and Kiba.

"You are nuts!" Fu squealed, her knuckles on white on the side of the boat.

Tayuya grinned and flexed her decent muscles. "Easy-peasy."

* * *

**(Confessional: Tayuya.) **

"These nerds and losers need to understand that I'm here to freaking _win_." Tayuya snaps, thumping her fist against the side of the Confessional. The camera shakes from the impact. "I'm tough as nails, and it'll take a lot to bring me down!"

**(End Confessional: Tayuya.)**

* * *

"Did she just punch a shark in the face?" Karin asked, incredulous.

"I think so," Konan said dully, "not gonna lie, that's pretty hardcore."

"Who's going next?" Shino asked the group.

"I'll do it," the goth continued, picking at her black bikini bottoms. "Not much scares me." Without a sound, she dropped into the water below and into the safe zone.

"Might as well get this over with," Sasuke grumbled, "if dog boy can do it, I can too." He walked over to the edge, "and I wouldn't be caught dead in that stupid chicken hat." He went over with a splash.

"Alright, we're on a good track." Shino observed. "I will be jumping now."

"Good luck," Karin offered as he went over the side. He landed in the safe zone, and all was well.

Karin, Deidera, Sakura and Shikamaru were the only Rhinos left on the cliff.

"See you guys down there," Karin told the others, "this challenge should be ours with no issue."

"Yeah, right…" Sakura gulped as the med student went over the side, "…no problem."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes as Deidera prepared to jump.

"This is no problem, hn." Deidera said, doing some stretches at the edge of the cliff, "It might sting a little on impact but what is a little stinging in the grand scheme of things?" He grinned at the last two Rhinos up there and nodded, "Adios!" before jumping.

It was just Sakura and Shikamaru up there now, and the slacker glanced at the trembling girl. "You can't do it, can you?"

Sakura froze up at those words. "I…I don't think I can," she admitted.

"That's fine, go get your hat."

Sakura shamefacedly approached the grinning host, who offered the gnarly yellow hat to her. Sakura clutched it in shame before placing it on her head. She turned around and let out a shocked gasp as the host put an identical hat onto Shikamaru.

"Shi…Shikamaru! What the hell are you doing?" She gasped, paling.

"What does it look like?" Shikamaru grumbled.

"But…why won't you tie it up?"

"Because then we'd have to deal with a tiebreaker and that's just a drag," Shikamaru gave a meaty yawn.

"Well too bad," Sakura snapped, "because I'm changing my mind! Let's see how happy the team is when _you're_ the only chicken!"

She started to stalk off towards the cliff, but Chris spoke up. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," the host advised her, "it doesn't matter now if you jump or not, you forfeited the point the moment you put the chicken hat on."

Sakura took a second to comprehend this. "Wait, so even if I jump, I don't get a point?"

"Correct!" Chris grinned, "that means, with a score of 10-9, the Foxes win the first part of the challenge and get the advantage!"

Sakura groaned while Shikmaru looked indifferent. "This is all your fault!" She snapped at the lazy boy, even though she knew it wasn't true.

* * *

"We _lost_!?" Temari snapped.

All twenty two campers were down on the beach. Notably Shikamaru, Sai and Sakura were still wearing their chicken hats.

"How could you two chicken out like that?! We had the victory in the bag!" Temari continued, glaring at the two chickens.

Sakura, to her credit, hung her head in shame. Shikamaru maintained his mask of indifference.

"Relax, lady," Shikamaru drawled, making Temari's eye twitch. "We'll win the main part, which is all that matters."

"Gonna be hard to do when we have such a sick advantage," Ino taunted from the other team. She turned to Chris, "err, what is our advantage, exactly?"

"Excellent question, Ino!" Chris grinned. He pointed to two stacks of crates nearby. "Each team has six crates they need to bring from here on this beach all the way back to the cabins. The Foxes get the advantage of having hand trucks to cart the crates with." The Foxes all looked pleased with this and the Rhinos gave out noises of discontent. "Once you bring the crates back to the camp, you must open them! However, this is easier said than done, because you HAVE to use your teeth and teeth only to get the crates open! Don't worry, they've been designed to be tough, but not impossible to open with your mouths. Minimal damage to teeth too!"

"So whats in the crates?" Karin asked.

"You'll find all the supplies and parts needed to build your very own hot tub! Everything, that is…except for the directions! Hahah! The team that builds the best hot tub wins the challenge." He surveyed the twenty two teens. "Now, are there any questions?"

Shino raised a hand, and Chris called on him.

"Is there some sort of time limit?" The bug boy asked, sunglasses glinting.

"Yes, you have until sundown." Chris confirmed, "it's about 3 o'clock right now, so that gives you about five hours total to get the crates the five-ish miles to camp and build the hot tub, so get moving!"

The teams split off and ran towards their crates. The Foxes had hand three trucks that could fit two crates each.

"How heavy are these crates?" Ino asked her teammates, giving one a half-hearted push.

"Not heavy," Kisame grinned, lifting up one with ease and thumping it down onto the cart.

"Yes, not heavy!" Lee agreed, lifting one up with a little more difficulty.

"Ugh, very heavy," Sakura panted, struggling to push the crate.

Temari clapped her hands and the Rhinos all turned to her. "Alright, we're going to push in groups, with one solo. Who's the strongest on this team?"

The Rhinos looked around. "Probably me or this meathead," Tayuya said, jerking her thumb at Kiba.

"I'll do the solo," Kiba told her, "help one of the weaklings."

Tayuya, surprisingly, didn't argue with this, and merely nodded. She walked up to Konan. "Let's get pushing, toothpick."

"I'm with her," Temari continued, walking up to Sakura.

"Oh, with me?" Sakura asked, looking over towards Sasuke, "maybe I could be with-"

"Do _not _argue with me, chicken little." Sakura fell silent, bitter but accepting. "Shino, take the other chicken. Deidera, take Karin. Sasuke, you're with Fu."

Fu looked delighted to be with the handsome rich boy. Everyone else seemed at least grudgingly accepting of the teams, so they began to push.

* * *

Kisame and Lee had easily loaded the boxes up to the carts.

"If one person takes each handle of the cart it'll be super easy to get it done." Itachi said.

"That still leaves 5 people with nothing to do." Karui pointed out.

"Well that's 5 people who can open the crates with their teeth." Kurotsuchi pointed out. "Anyone have a preference?"

"I can do both," Kisame said, showcasing his pointy teeth. He walked over to a cart, "let's save the strategizing for the road, teammates. We need to capitalize on our advantage."

Itachi joined him at the other handle. "I agree," he said, "let's move."

Sai and Kurotsuchi took one of the other carts, and Lee and Naruto took the other. The rest walked ahead of the pack.

"Does anyone actually know how to build a hot tub?" TenTen asked as they walked.

"How hard can it be?" Sai said dismissively, "even a bunch of dolts could figure it out I bet."

"I have to agree with Mr. Whiny." Naruto agreed, "They're gonna want us to build something. No way they make it like rocket science!"

"Mr. Whiny?" Sai blinked. "Watch your mouth, dumbass."

But Naruto had already gotten back to conversing with Lee, and didn't hear Sai's insult.

"Don't get so defensive," Kurotsuchi told him as they wheeled the crates along. "It's a bad look in a social game."

Sai responded to this with an exaggerated yawn, and the tomboy rolled her eyes.

"OHHH! WE'RE WALKING, WE'RE WHEELING, WE'RE GONNA WIN THE GAME!"

Most of the Foxes jumped as Lee and Naruto spontaneously burst into merry song.

"Bee!" Naruto looked back and grinned, "drop some beats for us!"

As Bee began to beatbox, Lee and Naruto continued their loud singing, even getting Kurotsuchi and TenTen to sing along.

Meanwhile, Hinata looked at the blonde bruiser with a small smile.

Sai looked like he wanted a screw in the eye.

* * *

"Do you guys hear singing?" Fu asked, eyebrow raised and sweating slightly.

It had been almost two hours since they started pushing, and they were now approaching the campground. Most of the Rhinos were dog-tired and crabby, and it didn't help that the singing got louder as they got closer to camp.

Sure enough, when they arrived the Foxes had already gotten to work on opening most of their crates, and were now organizing their materials.

"Wow, look who decided to stop by!" Karui taunted, smirking as the tired Rhinos took a quick breather.

"They performed admirably!" Lee agreed, missing the point of the taunt. Karui gave him a look, and he seemed to understand. "Oh! Uh, not that it matters, since we will totally kick your bottoms! Ha ha, and too bad, so sad!"

It didn't help that he was respectfully saluting the enemy team the entire time he 'taunted' them. Karui face palmed. "Just get back to work," she grumbled.

"Okay," Tayuya said, the first to recover from the break. "Those dweebs might have a head start but we can do this." She ground her fist into her palm. "Let's bust these crates open!"

Kiba was on a crate in a flash, sharp canines digging into the crate's fleshy edges. With a mighty tug, he hoisted the lid off. "Easy as pie, let me at the next one!"

Chris appeared out of nowhere. "Ah, ah, ah!" He tutted, wagging a finger condescendingly. "Each crate has to be opened by a different person. Can't make it too easy on you."

Temari rolled her eyes. "Of course." She turned to Kiba, "start sorting through and pulling out the stuff in that crate." She turned to the rest of the team. "Everyone else, get opening!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Temari.)**

"I've been leading all my life," Temari states proudly, "and I'm pretty damn good at it! Things weren't looking too good, but I knew with my leadership skills, we'd have a shot!"

**(End Confessional: Temari.)**

* * *

"Hrrrrghk!" Sakura was trying her damnedest to open her crate, desperately trying to make up for her blunder in the first part of the challenge. Finally, she heard a sharp snap and she was sent flying backwards. Groaning, she looked up to see the lid of the crate was off. "Yes!" She cheered.

Temari came up, an approving look on her face. "Not bad." She turned to leave, but Sakura ran up to her.

"Wait, Temari!" Sakura walked beside her as their de-facto leader went around surveying everyone. "I just wanted to explain what happened in the first part of the challenge and why I'm wearing this." She pointed at her chicken hat, which was slightly crooked from her recent tumble.

"Oh? You mean other than the fact that you just chickened out?" Temari seemed uninterested.

"No! I mean, yes…but I was really scared! And Shikamaru came up and told me it was ok! So I thought he was going to jump and we'd be tied! But then he just gave up!"

Temari stopped walking and turned to look at the pinkette. "Really? Why would he do that?"

"He said a tiebreaker would be a pain, or something like that." Sakura explained, wringing her hands together, "I would've jumped for the tie if I knew he was gonna give up, honest! He tricked me!"

Temari studied the pleading girl, studying for traces of a lie. Finding none, she allowed herself a trusting nod. "Fine, I'll keep an eye on Shikamaru. Thanks for your honesty." She walked off, and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief.

* * *

Eventually, both teams had managed to open all their crates, and were now debating how best to start putting their hot tubs together.

"I can't believe they didn't give us any instructions." Itachi mused, "this seems pretty complicated too."

"You're telling me," Naruto groaned, bonking on his head as he looked at all the parts. "Gah! What are we supposed to do!?"

"We'll do our best." TenTen said, stepping up and getting the rest of her teams attention. "Even if its not perfect, we're going to make a hot tub! I'm splitting you all up! Itachi, Kurotsuchi, work on the frame. Naruto, Sai, Bee, Lee, work on collecting water because we'll need a lot of it to fill this hot tub. Hinata, Ino, make sure all the small bits like screws and filter parts don't get lost. Kisame, Karui and myself will float around and help where it's needed."

Lee saluted. "Yes ma'am!" He bounded over to one of the crates and rummaged around for a second, coming up with a comical amount of buckets dangling from his arms. "Let's us go forwards, teammates!" He hooted.

"Blech, I can't wait until we're back in normal clothes and not swimsuits." Karui gagged, doing her best to keep her eyes off Lee's midsection.

Kisame watched TenTen curiously as she directed her team where to go.

* * *

**(Confessional: TenTen.)**

"I don't get off on telling people what to do," TenTen explains, "but we were in serious need of some leadership, and not the yell-y, degrade-y kind that Karui or some of the others would've brought to the table."

**(End Confessional: TenTen.)**

* * *

"Alright, we're looking good," Karin said, "my ex-boyfriend had a hot tub similar to this and he used to have to repair it all the time. I know a thing or two about this."

"I dunno what's more unbelievable," Tayuya muttered under her breath, "that she had a boyfriend at one time or how cliche it is that nerd face knows how to build a hot tub."

"What was that?" Karin asked sharply, but Tayuya ignored her. "That's what I thought…" she continued to the rest of the team. "I shall give instructions about how to build this hot tub. I need people that are good with their hands and clever to build the frame. The strongest of us should begin collecting water."

"I'm great with my hands," Deidera volunteered. Shino and Sasuke stepped up too.

"I'll go get the stupid water," Tayuya said, and Kiba and Temari went off with her.

"I actually might be able to help with the construction," Shikamaru offered, "If I can look at it like a giant puzzle, I'll probably be able to solve it."

Karin nodded, and the two began to observe their pieces.

"What about the rest of us?" Fu asked, gesturing to herself, Sakura and Konan.

"Just sit tight and be ready for miscellaneous tasks," Karin said impatiently. "Now let us work."

* * *

Hours passed and the sun began to sink. As it got closer to the horizon, the teams began to work more urgently.

Eventually, the sun dipped completely below the horizon, and an airhorn was heard.

"Alright!" Chris said, walking over to the teens. "Time is up! Time to see what you guys were able to make! Rhinos, you're up first!"

He walked over to the hot tub that the Rhinos made, which looked well made. Chris gave it a careful examination, testing the sturdiness of the structure, how the filter worked, if there were any leaks, and other things.

"Seems to be structurally sound," Chris said to the nervous Rhinos. He looked into the tub, "but its only about two-thirds full!"

"We ran out of time," Sakura protested, "water's heavy, y'know!"

Chris dipped his hand in the water, and it was hot. "It's too hot," he told the Rhinos, "because there isn't enough water in it. Other than that, it's not bad."

The Rhino's hung their head in defeat.

"Great, we're so boned!" Temari groaned.

"Maybe the Foxes messed up more than we did!" Kiba said hopefully.

"We'll find out in a second." Chris told them. He walked up to the Foxes, and their hot tub looked good too. "Foxes, how're you feeling? Confident?"

"Of course!" Naruto boasted, "it's the best hot tub ever!"

"Well, it's full, so that's good," Chris observed, dipping his finger in the water. "Nice temperature too!" He went to the base and gave it a firm shake. "Well, it seems to be a perfectly good hot tub," Chris grinned, "so it looks like…hey, why are my feet wet?"

He and the Foxes looked down, and Ino let out a gasp of horror.

There was a sizable stream leaking between two of the boards of the hot tub, right onto the hosts shoes.

"Blech!" Chris leapt back and shook his shoes, and the Rhinos could barely contain their excitement. "That's a major leak, Foxes. That blunder can't be outweighed by a not full tub. The winner's of this challenge are…

The Rampaging Rhinos!"

The Rhinos broke out into cheers of varying volumes. Tayuya and Konan high fived, Kiba and Shino exchanged a fist bump, and Temari grinned victoriously.

Meanwhile, on the Foxes, they all let out groans of disappointment.

"Foxes, that means you will be sending someone home tonight! You all will go eat dinner in the Mess Hall, after which the Foxes will be called to the first elimination ceremony to cast your votes and send one of you down the Dock of Shame in a humiliating fashion!"

He turned to leave, "and by the way, Rhinos, your reward for winning is…you get to keep that hot tub for your team to use for the rest of the summer!"

The Rhinos all cheered at that.

"Now, go get out of your swimsuits and back into your clothes. Dinner is in 10, and the elimination ceremony half an hour after that."

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

"I can't believe we lost!" Naruto exclaims, slapping his forehead. "And now one of us has to leave?! Well, it's not gonna be me, believe it!"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Kiba.)**

Kiba pumps his fist, back in his normal clothes with Akamaru perched on his head. "Let's go, baby! We pulled out the win even though we lost the first part of the challenge! Comeback kings, woot woot!"

**(End Confessional: Kiba.)**

* * *

The twenty two teens, back in normal clothes, were eating their mediocre dinner in the Mess Hall. The teams each sat at a separate table. While the talk at the Rhino table was jovial and giddy, it was silent at the Foxes.

That is, until someone broke it.

"So, are we gonna like, discuss who we're voting for?" Ino asked. "Or are we going into it blind."

"I think some discussion could be beneficial," Kisame agreed, sharp eyes scanning his teammates, most of which now looked nervous. "Would anyone care to throw the first name out there?"

Everyone was quiet for a few seconds, before Sai spoke up.

"I think it should be either Lee, Naruto or Bee." He said placidly. He missed Kisame's savage grin.

"Us?!" Naruto yelped, jumping up in his seat and nearly upending his dinner. "Why us?!"

"Because you're idiots," Sai said pointedly, "and you were little help this challenge."

"At least we jumped, fool!" Bee spat, pointing his finger at Sai accusingly, "and it looks like to me someone has a chicken hat on his head."

Sai scoffed, "we won that part of the challenge you dumbass, my failure to jump was inconsequential, just like I knew it would be." He glared at TenTen, "we also had a terrible leader for the building part."

TenTen scoffed, "at least I tried to do something."

"Don't blame TenTen, she did her best." Lee proclaimed, "we all tried our best!"

Sai actually groaned, "will you shut up with that revolting attitude? No one likes your fake cheeriness."

"Fake…?" Lee repeated, confused. He jumped when Karui cut in.

"He's kind of right. And what gross pig brings a bathing suit like that to this island?"

"Wh…what's wrong with my bathing suit? It's youthful." Lee defended himself.

"Back off him!" Naruto snarled, "you're just a big jerk, Sai!"

"Big ol jerk, got no perks," Bee added.

Itachi had been silent this whole time, studying Kisame. The elder Uchiha had not overlooked the big smirk the big teen had on his face.

* * *

**(Confessional: Itachi.)**

Itachi brushes his long hair out of his eyes with a limp hand. "It seems Kisame was not lying when he claimed that he is more than a meathead. It was rather clever what he did, if not a little devious." A small smile plays at his lips, "I don't mind, though. Sai is a bit of a jerk, and Lee can be rather grating."

**(End Confessional: Itachi.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

Kisame is grinning broadly, "Hello, prime two candidates for elimination!"

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

Before the argument at the Foxes could escalate any further, Chris walked in.

"Attention Foxes, it is time for the elimination ceremony. Please follow me down to the elimination area."

There was a loud noise as eleven chairs scraped the wooden floor of the Mess Hall, and the Foxes left the Mess Hall single-file.

"Have fun!" Tayuya mocked from the Rhinos, eliciting a couple chuckles from her team.

"Bite me, troll!" Ino snapped as she left.

* * *

The eleven foxes sat on the stumps. It was truly night time out, and crickets chirped merrily out of sight.

There was a blazing fire between the eleven campers and Chris, who stood at his oil barrel. Firelight cast shadows across the dimly lit area, very successful in creating tension for the teens. Chris pulled a tray out from behind the barrel, and on it were ten marshmallows.

"You all have cast your votes." Chris told them, "the fate of one of you is sealed. Here on this tray are ten marshmallows. These represent life and safety here on Total Drama Island. If your name is called, please come up and claim one. If you are the one camper _not_ to receive a marshmallow, you must walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and leave Total Drama Island…and you can _never_ come back." He added. "_EVER." _

He let this sink in for a few seconds, and relished all the nervous looks on most of the campers faces. Only a few, like Kisame, Itachi and Karui looked unbothered.

"The first marshmallow goes to…Kisame."

Kisame smirked as he stood up. He gave Lee a mocking pat on his shoulder as he passed him and went up to Chris. He plucked a marshmallow from the tray and ate it in one bite.

"Please stand by the fire while your fellow campers join you." Chris instructed. He turned back to the ten yet to be called safe. "Also safe are…"

He trailed off dramatically, looking very pleased with himself.

"Oh just get on with it!" Naruto pleaded, biting his fingernails.

Chris laughed, "Ino, and Bee!"

The model and rapper high fived and quickly joined Kisame at the fire. They clinked their marshmallows together in celebration.

"…Karui, Hinata, TenTen and Itachi, none of you are in peril tonight either. Come get a marshmallow."

That left only Naruto, Sai, Lee and Kurotsuchi without marshmallows.

"One of you four will go down in history as the first person to be publicly humiliated on this show," Chris told them. "But that person will _not _be…Kurotsuchi."

The tomboy heaved a large sigh of relief and all but ran to get her marshmallow.

"Naruto, you are also safe."

"YEAH!" Naruto leapt up, did a massive fist pump, and bounded over to Chris to get his marshmallow. He happily joined his teammates in the safety of the firelight, but soon looked nervous for Lee.

"Lee, Sai, this is the final marshmallow of the night." Chris said solemnly. Lee looked terrified, while Sai was shooting Lee a confident smirk.

* * *

**(Confessional: Lee.)**

"I've been training for years for an opportunity like this!" Lee exclaims, terrified, "that dream cannot die so soon! It just can't!"

**(End Confessional: Lee.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Sai.)**

"I will be very relieved to see that revolting bowl cut fading from view on the back of that crummy boat." Sai says with a happy sigh.

**(End Confessional: Sai.)**

* * *

Chris held up the final marshmallow. It goes to…"

Naruto and Bee clutched each other for support, silently rooting on their exuberant friend.

Kisame was staring holes at the marshmallow in Chris's hand, knowing full well who he wanted it to go to. He didn't even notice the person clutching his arm in suspense.

TenTen was so caught up in the suspense that she didn't even realize she had Kisame's arm in a death grip.

Karui looked very nonchalant about the whole ordeal. She didn't care who went home since she didn't like either.

"…

…

…

…

…

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Lee."

"Noooo!" Bee and Naruto howled at the same time, clutching each other ever harder, "you were so youthful!" Naruto sobbed.

"Easy you two, it means he's safe," Itachi said with a smile.

Both Lee and Sai were frozen, but for very different reasons.

"I'm….I'm still in?! I'm still in!" Lee jumped up and ran at Chris. "Oh thank you, thank you!"

Chris put up a hand and mashed it against Lee's face so the boy couldn't envelop him in a hug. "Don't thank me, dude, thank your teammates." He let go of Lee's face and dropped the marshmallow into his hand. "There ya go."

Lee turned to his teammates with happy tears dusting his eyes. "You won't regret this!" He said fiercely, "I will make the team proud!"

Bee and Naruto let out happy cheers that were half sobs and enveloped their friend in a crushing bear hug. Ino took a step away from the trio, disgusted.

Sai finally snapped himself out of his shock and stood up, glaring at his former team. "Fine!" He spat, "singing up for this show was a huge mistake anyways! Thanks for doing me a favor! Assholes!"

The three boys stopped their sobbing abruptly and turned to wave exaggeratedly at the departing boy. "Buh-bye!" Lee called, "jerk-head!"

"Don't let the boat door hit you in the ass on the way out!" Bee hooted.

"Smell ya later, dummy!" Naruto added.

"Enough you three," Itachi said quietly, "it doesn't pay to be sore winners."

The three boys quieted down.

"Sai, you've been eliminated from Total Drama Island," Chris told the boy as he approached him. "Your luggage has been packed and stowed on the Boat of Losers. Any final words before you walk the Dock of Shame?"

"Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words," He told the Foxes bitterly. With nothing left to say, he turned up his nose and marched down the Dock. The Foxes were silent as they watched him leave. He stepped onto the boat, being driving by Chef Hatchet, and it sped off out of sight.

The ten remaining Foxes looked at each other in the firelight until Chris broke the silence.

"Ooooh, dramatic!" He rubbed his hands together, "Well Foxes, you ten have survived the first day at Camp Wawanakwa. Go get some sleep, because tomorrows challenge is a doozy. You are dismissed."

The ten Foxes headed back to their cabin.

* * *

It was late, but there was a hot tub party going on at the Rhinos. Fu, Tayuya, Kiba, and Deidera were actually in the hot tub, chatting and laughing. Akamaru was sitting on the edge of the tub, biting excitedly at the churning water. Sakura, Shino, Sasuke and Temari were sitting at nearby picnic table chatting and getting to know one another better. Konan had went to bed because she didn't like parties, Karin was in the bathroom getting ready for bed, and Shikamaru was tired of getting glared at by Sakura so he had gone to bed too.

"Oh look who it is!" Kiba grinned as he saw the Foxes returning from their elimination ceremony.

"So tough that you guys lost, maybe next time!" Fu called with false-sympathy and a giggle.

"Just ignore them," Kurotsuchi advised the louder members of the Foxes. "They'll be eating their words when we win tomorrow."

The Foxes passed them and entered their cabin without retaliation, the girls splitting off into the right room and the boys entering the left.

"Aww, they're no fun," Tayuya said dismissively, slapping the water and accidentally nailing Kiba in the face with a wave. "Wups, watch yourself, Dogboy."

As Kiba spluttered indignantly and Fu and Deidera laughed, the tone of conversation was a little more serious over at the picnic table.

"An alliance? Isn't it a little early for one of those?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow.

Temari nodded, "I know, and I know we don't know each other that well yet, but we all seem like decent competitors. I suggest we just keep it on the down low, don't flaunt it, and we just hit each other up whenever we lose to decide who is going home."

"I think its a great idea!" Sakura said quickly, looking excited to be involved with the handsome Sasuke on something. "Better safe than sorry, right?"

"Exactly," Temari agreed. "Shikamaru seems like real dead weight, Karin's a little strange, Tayuya's a jerk, and Konan's antisocial. Kiba, Fu and Deidera are nice, but I don't know if they have that killer edge that'll help them excel here."

"And she does?" Shino asked, looking at Sakura and her chicken hat, which Chris had reminded her she still couldn't take off. The pinkette flushed but glared defiantly back at him.

"She seems fine," Sasuke said dismissively, moreso to challenge Shino than to compliment Sakura, but she blushed all the same. "Like Temari said, it's still really early in the game, but as far as rudimentary alliances go, I think I can work with this one."

"Hmm, I guess I agree as well," Shino said, "just please remember to keep it on the down low. We wouldn't want the others ganging up on us if they found out."

The four nodded, and it was decided.

* * *

In the Fox boy cabin, things were loud.

"I am so glad you're still here, dude!" Naruto hollered.

"I'm so glad _you're_ still here, my boisterous friend!" Lee retaliated.

"I'm so glad you're _both _still here, my brothers from other mothers!" Bee wrapped an arm around each of their necks and brought them in for a bear hug.

"It's going to be impossible to get any sleep here, is it?" Kisame groaned, in bed already.

Itachi, on the bed next to him, looked over at the three. "Something tells me they'll tire themselves out soon enough. It's been a long day."

"I can only hope," Kisame muttered.

* * *

"I still think Lee should've gone." Karui said as the girls settled into bed in the Fox cabin.

"Lee? But he's nice," TenTen protested.

"He's loud and obnoxious, and not particularly helpful. Bee or Naruto could've gone too, any of them would've been fine." Karui said as she snuggled under her sheets, red hair splayed out on the pillow. "I don't hate any of them, even if they are a little annoying, but at least Sai was calm and collected."

"Sai was a freaking jerk." Ino pointed out. "And he seemed to be hell bent on being a little shit too. I'm glad he's gone."

"Yeah," Hinata spoke up, "and…and Naruto's too nice to got home anyways. Lee too."

"Pfft," Karui waved a hand, "yeah, let's see how far niceness will get you in this competition once the heat really starts getting kicked up."

TenTen grinned as she reclined back onto her bed. "I can't wait."

* * *

Chris stood on the Dock of Shame in the dark, with only the dying fire of the elimination ceremony behind him to illuminate him. "What an exciting first day on Total Drama Island! Our first contestant is gone, but many more are soon to follow? What do we have in store for our unprepared campers? Find out right here, NEXT time, on Total! Drama! Chaos!"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals:**_

Bee: No way Sai is going after my boy. He's got a nasty ploy, but it'll be foi...led! Lata' Sai!

Hinata: *Tapping her fingers together* I...I don't want to vote off Naruto's friend, and Sai seems to be really mean...I vote for him. Sorry!

Ino: Sai may be a bit of a jerk, but he's not annoying like the other boys on our team. Besides, he's kind of cute. I'll vote for Lee tonight. Maybe Sai can mellow out if he stays.

Itachi: While both boys in peril are tempting to vote for, I have to go for Sai. If he stays he will only bring more discord amongst us.

Karui: Sai's a jerk but so what? Jerks ain't all bad. Lee on the other hands *shivers* yuck. See ya later, Bowl Cut.

Kisame: My plan worked to perfection. I knew it was only a matter of time before Sai pissed off the wrong people. Bye bye.

Kurotsuchi: Man, this is actually kind of a tough vote. I think I'll have to vote for Sai though. I'll take annoying over asshole anyday.

Lee: I vote for Sai! He is very rude and not a team player at all!

Naruto: Sai is such a jerk face! He's rude to us because he thinks we're stupid! We'll see who is all high and mighty tonight!

Sai: Lee will be the first of the obnoxious three to go. Maybe once they're all gone we can work well as a team.

TenTen: Lee's annoying, but at least he's nice. Sai can suck it.

* * *

_**Votes: **_

Sai: 8 votes - (Bee, Hinata, Itachi, Kisame, Kurotsuchi, Lee, Naruto, TenTen).

Lee: 3 votes - (Ino, Karui, Sai).

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Tayuya, Sasuke, Kiba, Fu, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Bee, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai.**_

* * *

**_Last __Words:_**

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

* * *

**And there is the end of the episode, and Sai becomes the first to leave us! I eliminated him first because I don't think his blunt nature would be really suited for a social game. He gets better on later in canon obviously, and he's a funny character with good backstory, but none of it really works for this universe. **

**Who do you guys think will be eliminated next? What will the next challenge be? Let me know your thoughts in a review. I hope you enjoyed! **

**Ciao! **


	3. The Big Sleep!

**Time for the next episode! Let's get to it. Who will be going next?!**

**There's been a slight change in the format of this story. There will be three challenge episodes followed by a rest episode. These will usually just be used for development for the characters, and won't have any elimination in them. They will likely be shorter too. **

**Also, since the show this story pulls from has more seasons after this, I've been toying with the idea of doing two more seasons after this one...maybe adding in some new characters. People like Choji, Hidan, and a couple others who almost made it into this story but were cut last minute.**

* * *

"Last time, on Total Drama Island, we met our twenty two campers." A smash cut of all 22 teens setting foot on the dock was shown. "They were divided into two teams, the Fierce Foxes and the Rampaging Rhinos!" The camera showed both logos before putting the two teams under their respective logos. "Are expected, there were some early friendships AND arguments!" Tayuya was shown being a jerk, Karui glared at Bee, Lee, and Naruto, and Kiba grinned at Shino. "In an intense first challenge, the Rampaging Rhinos pulled off a comeback victory despite losing the first part of the challenge," the Rhinos were shown cheering and partying in their hot tub, "and it was _Sai_ that took the title of being the first one eliminated!" An annoyed Sai was shown yelling at his teammates and stalking down the Dock of Shame. "First blood has just been spilled. What do we have in store for our campers tonight? Find out right here, right now, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

The sun was just rising up over the hills. The twenty one campers were sleeping peacefully, but a certain host was about to change that. Said host was sitting in his personal trailer, hands on the controls for the loudspeaker that was situated between the two cabins. He pressed a certain button.

**GNNNNYEAAAAARRRRRGHHHHHHHH!**

The loudspeaker emitted a horrible burst of high-pitched static at a startlingly high volume. Needless to say, it was very effective in waking up the teens.

"Ack!" Naruto thrashed around in his sheets, falling out of his bed in a tangled heap. From above him, Lee leapt down gracefully, his matching dark green pajamas rippling in the air. "Up and at 'em, Naruto!" The exuberant boy scolded, stepping over him, "it is time for another intense challenge!"

Naruto extricated himself from his sheets and sprung up, clad in only bright orange boxers. "I'm ready for it, believe it!"

"Today is the day we get victo-ray, ain't no way we lose, the enemy won't get to choose." Bee sang as he did some stretches.

"What he said!" Lee and Naruto agreed.

Itachi, in his expensive black silk pajamas, made for the door. Kisame was right behind him, toiletry bag clutched in his hand.

"How do they have so much energy so soon after being woken up?" Kisame grumbled, scratching the back of his neck as the two walked towards the bathrooms.

"I think they are just naturally energetic," Itachi said.

"More like naturally annoying," Kisame corrected.

* * *

"Ugh, what the hell was that?!" TenTen complained, fixing her hair into her signature buns.

"Whatever it was it was loud as hell," Kurotsuchi said, looking far more awake than the rest of her cabinmates.

"How are you so…functional?" Ino groaned, still curled up under her covers, "it's so early I could puke."

"I'm used to early mornings on the farm," Kurotsuchi shrugged.

At that moment, Hinata came in from using the bathroom.

"Good morning, HInata," TenTen said, looking at Hinata via the mirror.

Hinata gave a small smile, "M-morning!"

Meanwhile, Karui was rummaging around in her make-up bag. "Where is that stupid eyeliner?" Next to her, Kurotsuchi raised an eyebrow, "You brought make up to the island?"

"Duh!" Karui scoffed, finally securing the eyeliner and straightening up, "There are some hot ass dudes on this island," she smirked, "I gotta look nice."

"Amen to that," Ino agreed, the talk of cute boys and makeup finally rousing her from her bed.

"Huh, I didn't bring any with me," Kurotsuchi remarked, looking a little insecure now, "I guess I was too focused on the competition."

"I-if it makes you feel any better, I don't wear any either," Hinata offered with a small smile.

"Yeah, and I don't think TenTen does either," Ino added.

Kurotuschi looked a little relieved but TenTen seemed offended. "Um, I do wear makeup." The athletic girl pointed out. "I was wearing makeup yesterday."

Ino seemed genuinely surprised, "oh hon, I didn't mean to offend! I just meant that you're so pretty and I didn't see any obvious tells!"

"Well, I do go for a more au-natural look," TenTen admitted, all trace of offense gone and looking a little flattered.

"It looks great," Ino assured her before turning to Hinata, "and Hinata, you should totally wear some makeup! You could easily be a model like me."

Hinata turned beet red and shook her head quickly. "Me? No, never!"

Ino smirked as Kurotsuchi and TenTen giggled at her modesty. "Don't think that bulky shirt hides your body from us! If you put in a little effort you could have the boys here drooling all over you!"

HInata didn't seem capable of responding to that, and just sat there looking embarrassed. Eventually, she spoke up. "I…I don't think I'm comfortable with that, Ino…I do appreciate that offer, though."

Ino didn't seem the least put out. If anything, she looked excited by the challenge. "We'll see, Hinata, we'll see…"

* * *

**(Confessional: Ino.)**

Ino flips her hair over her shoulder and grins. "Okay, like, I'm something of an _expert_ on people and their relationships, and I can tell Hinata likes one of the boys…though I'm not sure who yet." She punches her palm, "I gotta find out who it is!"

**(End Confessional: Ino.)**

* * *

In the other cabin, the Rhinos were rousing themselves, still high on yesterday's win.

"Yeah!" Kiba hooted as he cradled Akamaru, "what a win yesterday, guys! What a comeback!"

"Don't get cocky," Shino advised, adjusting his sunglasses.

"It did feel nice, though," Sasuke admitted, pulling on his shirt. "And knowing one of the Foxes went home last night really amps up the tension."

"Yeah, hn," Deidera agreed, getting off his bunk and heading over to one of the two big dressers in the cabin. On the top of it were several clay sculptures. Currently on it were 9 figurines. Deidera added 2 more and grinned. "Our team, hn!"

Shikamaru walked over with Kiba and looked at the figurines. "These are weird," Shikamaru noted, picking one up and examining it. It was rough and crude, like all of Deidera's sculptures, but it had a noticeable spiky hairstyle. "Is this me?"

"It is!" Deidera said proudly, "I made one for each of us! I'll get started on the other team soon. We can put each team on one of the dresser tops, and get rid of them as they leave the island!"

"That could be fun," Kiba said, finding the one of him. It had a mini dog on his head. "Maybe the eliminated person can keep it as a memoir?"

"I like that!" Deidera beamed, scratching his nose. "Then everyone will get to keep my art!"

"As fun as this conversation is, it's probably a safe bet to go see what Chris wants from us," Shino said, walking over to the other boys and adjusting his sunglasses again.

"Hey, do you sleep with those on?" Shikamaru asked curiously, nodding his head at the glasses.

His sunglasses glinted, which was odd since there was no sunlight reflecting on them, "that's really none of your business."

"Err…okay, then." Shikamaru said, giving the boy a weird look.

* * *

**(Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

Shikamaru lets out a hefty yawn. "Man, my cabin mates are so _weird_," he gripes. "Deidera's obsessed with his sculptures, Sasuke's arrogant, Kiba loves his stupid mutt, and Shino is just…weird." He shakes his head, "something tells me this summer is gonna be a major drag."

**(End Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

* * *

"You did such a good job leading the team yesterday, Temari!" Fu gushed.

Temari smiled and tried not to look too pleased with herself. "Oh please, Fu, it was nothing," her attempt at humility was rather tarnished by her grin, which got even bigger.

"No, you did help us out big time," Karin agreed, crossing her arms and nodding. Fu gave the girl a thumbs up as she left the cabin, heading for the bathrooms.

"Just don't get too big for your _britches_," Tayuya added, watching as Fu left the cabin.

Temari let out a hearty laugh that startled the other women. "I'm not an idiot, Tayuya," she told the bully, her tone a little mocking, "besides, I'd make sure my own back is safe before telling me to watch mine."

Tayuya held up a fist threateningly, taking two steps towards Temari. "Is that a threat, Prissy Girl?"

Temari couldn't have looked less intimidated if she tried, "No, it's advice."

Sakura stepped between the two, surprising both of them. "Knock it off, Tayuya," she snapped, getting up in the bully's face. "Threatening and bullying people in a social game is just _stupid_, so pull your act together!"

Tayuya looked surprised, but smirked after a couple of seconds. "You got guts, Pinkie, I'll give you that. She put a hand on Sakura's shoulder and gently nudged her out of the way so she could get an unobstructed view of Temari. She held out her first, which seemed to surprise the other girl.

"My bad," Tayuya admitted, "I'm a cranky bitch before I get my coffee, I know that. Sakura's right, I'll try and chill a little bit for the sake of the game."

Temari studied the first Tayuya was extending for a second before hesitantly accepting the fist bump, her wary gaze never leaving her face.

Tayuya clapped her hands and nodded, "alright, with that BS settled, let's go find out how we kick the Foxes butts…_again_!"

Temari grinned wolfishly, "I can get behind that."

The two left the cabin, Karin in tow.

Konan walked up to Sakura, the only two girls left in the cabin.

"You've got balls, standing up to her like that," Konan told her drily.

Sakura turned around to face Konan, an excited look on her face. "There's good in Tayuya, I know there is. She can be a valuable player to the team I think, and the less we lose, the better!"

Konan nodded in agreement, though she did look a little put off by Sakura's cheeriness.

* * *

**(Confessional: Sakura.)**

"Cha, that felt so good standing up to Tayuya!" Sakura boasts, doing a couple of excited punches at the camera. "The thing is, she's strong and seems to be pretty smart, so if we can harness that without her being a total jerk to everyone, we can do better in challenges! Besides, I don't want any chance of me going home, not before I get to talk to Sasuke!" She blushes, "I'm so happy we're on the same team, I hope I get a good chance to get some one-on-one talk with him soon!"

**(End Confessional: Sakura.)**

* * *

"Attention campers," Chris's voice emitted from the same loudspeaker that the horrendous noise had just come from, "now that you are all awake and functioning to a certain degree, please meet me at the lake for your next challenge!"

"Next challenge?" Itachi repeated as he exited the bathroom with Kisame and Bee. "But we haven't had breakfast yet."

"Nothing to eat? Why, got me beat! This is some bull-sheeeet!" Bee rapped, nodding his head along to a nonexistent beat.

"Better do as the man says," TenTen advised, walking up to the three boys with Kurotsuchi and Ino.

"Morning, boys," Ino purred, winking at them.

The effect she was hoping to have sort of worked. While Bee blushed and stammered out a hello, and Kisame's usual grin got a little wider when he saw her, Itachi seemed totally blasé about the girls appearance.

"Itachi!" The blonde continued, walking over to the elder Uchiha and touching him gently on the shoulder, "how'd you sleep last night, are you ready for the challenge?"

Itachi offered her a polite smile. "I slept perfectly fine, thank you Ino. As for the challenge, I'm afraid I'll need to learn what it is we'll be dong before I can give you an accurate representation of my chances." With that said, he walked towards the lake. Kisame followed him, trying not to laugh, and Bee was trying to give Itachi a noogie while explaining that Ino had been flirting with him.

The three girls watched them leave.

"Oh my god, he's hot." Kurotsuchi said, fanning herself.

"I know," Ino said, almost complaining. "That quiet, gentlemanly vibe he gives off…and those eyes…oof." She shakes her head and grins, "well, let's impress him by kicking butt in today's challenge!"

As the two girls eagerly followed the boys to the lake, TenTen couldn't help but roll her eyes.

* * *

**(Confessional: TenTen.)**

"Sure, Itachi is good looking," TenTen admits, "his brother is even more of a babe. But…they're just too pretty!" She shakes her head, "And the girls on my team really need to get their head in the game. Karui and Ino are fretting over makeup? Like, hello, this is a competition for $100,000 dollars!" She gives an exasperated sigh.

**(End Confessional: TenTen.)**

* * *

All twenty-one campers were now standing around the lake. Chris was there grinning. "Good morning campers, sleep well?"

"Like a baby," Konan said sarcastically.

"Good!" Chris said, ignoring the sarcasm. "Now, I hope you're ready for this next challenge, because it's a tough one!"

"What about breakfast?" Naruto whined, "I'm hungry!"

"You'll get breakfast after the challenge," Chris assured him, failing to hide his devilish smirk. "Now, your challenge is…the 8 mile run around the lake!"

This announcement was met by several moans and groans, mostly because the campers hadn't eaten anything yet.

"You want us to run on an empty stomach?" TenTen asked, incredulous, "I hope you're not expecting a competitive race."

"You just have to complete the lap, you don't have to run the entire time," Chris told them, "You must do one lap, then meet at the Mess Hall. That is all." He pulled out a pistol and prepared to fire it into the air. "Ready…set…go!"

The campers all took off at various speeds.

* * *

The camera panned to the front of the pack of twenty one teens. Kisame was in front by a fair distance, and a smaller pack of Lee, TenTen, Tayuya, Temari, Naruto and Sasuke were behind him. Further back was Kiba and Fu. A good bit separated the next group, those of whom were mostly chatting while lightly jogging. These people were Karui, Bee, Shino, Deidera, and Kurotsuchi. Trailing towards the back of the pack were Ino and Sakura. Hinata jogged by herself, as did Itachi. Karin, Konan and Shikamaru were walking.

The minutes turned into an hour, and then two.

Chris stood in the Mess Hall, reclining in one of the chairs and chatting idly with Chef. "She's got a sister, dude." He told him.

Chef raised an eyebrow from the kitchen, cooking something on the stove. "For real? Hit me up with those digits, man."

"You got it," Chris said amicably, "you know, she-" he was interrupted by the Mess Hall door banging open.

"Wonderful, seems like I'm in first," A slightly sweaty Kisame entered with his signature sharky grin and thudded down into one of the chairs at his table.

"Kisame, no surprises there," Chris said, standing up from his own chair and taking a more host-like position by the chef's counter. "Anyone close behind you?"

"Not really," Kisame shrugged.

"Then we wait."

* * *

Fifteen minutes went by before the next person showed up.

"Ugh, I am so hungry," Temari complained.

"We shall feast soon, honorable opponent!" Lee exclaimed, coming in right behind her.

Sasuke and Tayuya entered too, but remained silent.

One by one and two by two, people continued to trickle in, until only Ino, Sakura, Shikamaru and Karin had yet to enter.

"Not good," Kiba grumbled, "we still need three people and the others only need one."

The door opened slowly, and everyone in the Mess Hall craned to look at who walked in.

"Ugh, that was awful," a shaky Karin said, walking over to her team and giving them a tired smile.

A couple minutes went by before they heard more voices.

Sakura and Ino walked in, fanning themselves and complaining about how hot, tired, and hungry they were.

"Yes! We won!" Naruto hooted, standing up from his chair and pumping his fists in celebration.

"Ugh!" Tayuya spat, "that lazy dweeb is in last, of course!"

As if on cue, a yawning Shikamaru entered.

"You are so getting voted out," Tayuya continued, glaring at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at her, "why me?"

"Uh, probably because you lost us the challenge," Sasuke pointed out.

It was at this moment that Chris decided to interrupt. "Well," he drawled obnoxiously, "no one has officially _lost_ the challenge yet…"

This seemed to confuse the campers.

"What? But Shikamaru was the last person in, and he's part of the Rhinos. How do they not lose?" Karui asked, a little irritated.

"Because the race wasn't the full challenge!" Chris told her, "it was just part _one_!"

"Well that's good," Temari said, relieved.

"Yeah, for you guys," TenTen grumbled.

"What's part two?" Temari continued, shooting TenTen a competitive look.

"We'll get to that in a bit, but for now…"

Chef blasted through the saloon-style door with a huge tray of delicious looking food. Turkey, eggs, hot chocolate, baked beans with maple syrup, and many other rich delicious foods.

"Who's _hungry_?!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)**

"After two crappy meals here, I almost smiled when I saw that buffet," Konan deadpans. She's silent for a few seconds. "_Almost_."

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

Naruto has his hands clasped and is looking up at the ceiling, a dreamy look on his face. Unbeknownst to him, there is a thin strand of drool dripping down from his mouth. "The turkey looked so moist…and the baked beans smelled so good…uhhhhhhhhhhh…"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

"Dig in!" Chris told them, and they were so infatuated with the food that they missed the mischievous glint in his eyes, "you all deserve it, that run was _exhausting_!"

Carnage ensued as the teens attacked the food.

* * *

An hour later, Chris reentered the Mess Hall. The food eating had just about wrapped up and the teens were looking very satisfied.

"You guys nice and full?" Chris smirked, walking to the center of the Hall. "Good! Because it's time for the next part of your challenge."

"Ughhh, I thought eating was the second part," Naruto groaned, holding his bloated stomach and burping.

"Nope, it's not! The second part of your challenge is…the Awakeathon!"

"The What-a-thon?" Fu repeated, eyebrow raised.

"Awakeathon," Chris repeated, "it's as simple as it sounds! We'll all head down to the elimination ceremony and you have to stay awake for as long as you can! First team to lose all its members loses, and will vote someone off!"

The campers digested this.

"Wait…" Shikamaru said in growing horror, "you mean that run and all this filling, delicious food was…"

"Just to make it more difficult to stay awake." Temari finished through gritted teeth. "Ugh."

Chris just laughed at this, noticing that several of the campers looked to be in food coma-esque states already. "I can already tell I'm going to love this challenge. Now get moving."

"So," Sakura said, walking next to Sasuke as everyone filed out the door, "how long do you think before people start falling asleep."

Sasuke looked around at his fellow campers, noting the already zombie-like Naruto and the yawning Shikamaru. "A couple hours…maybe less."

Sakura giggled, "oh Sasuke, you're so funny!"

"Err…that wasn't a joke," Sasuke pointed out, but Sakura didn't seem to hear.

* * *

**(Awakeathon Timer: 12 hours.)**

Contrary to Sasuke's initial thoughts, 12 hours had gone by, and it was now 11pm. Everyone was still awake. The stumps used for the losing team at the elimination area had been temporarily removed and the fire had been lit, casting cozy firelight around the dark area. It was relatively silent as the campers just sat there.

"Glraaaargh," Naruto gurgled, using his hands to keep his eyelids open but unable to keep the drool out of his mouth. "I'm _so_ tired."

Next to him, Kurotsuchi wasn't looking much better. "I'm not used to such late niiights" she stifled a yawn, "but we have to tough it out!" She smacked her palm with her fist, looking a little more energetic, "eh, Naruto?" She turned to look at the blonde, but he had passed out. His snoring had already begun.

"And the first camper bites the dust," Chris smirked, "took longer than I thought, I gotta admit. Still satisfying, though."

"Useless," Karui grumbled, looking at the sleeping boy. She, Ino, and TenTen were sitting together, and Karui and Ino had been talking once again about the cute boys on the island to pass the time.

Eventually, TenTen got a little fed up and stood up.

"Oh? Where ya going?" Ino asked her.

TenTen gave a vague wave, "I'm gonna walk around a bit, maybe chat with some of the others."

Ino nodded and turned back to her conversation with Karui, and TenTen was left to survey her options for conversation.

Bee was nodding his head and scribbling something in his notebook, Lee looking over his solder and muttering excitedly. Hinata was sitting by herself, looking a little sleepy. Itachi was next to her, staring into the firelight. Kurotsuchi had joined Ino and Karui. Kisame was sitting by himself too.

Weighing her options, she decided to go sit next to Hinata and Itachi.

"Hey Hinata," she greeted, "holding up okay?"

Hinata gave a little shrug, "I'm doing good. I'm a little tired but I think I can hang on for a little longer."

"Glad to hear it," TenTen grinned, plopping down besides the girl and giving Itachi a little wave. "Hey Itachi, how about you?"

Itachi nodded in greeting. "I'm feeling quite fine. I stay up late a lot, it comes with the business."

"Oh, that's right, you're the heir to your father's company, right?" A new voice interrupted, and the three turned to see Kisame approaching them. He sat down on the other side of Itachi and stretched his arms over his head.

Itachi nodded, "I've spent many years learning the inner workings of the company."

"How does Sasuke feel about that?" TenTen asked. "Does he want to work for the company?"

Itachi gave a fond chuckle, something that surprised the others as they had never heard him laugh. "My little brother has very little interest in the family business, though I honestly think he'd be better at running it than me. He's a little more ruthless than I am."

"How much younger is Sasuke?" Hinata asked quietly, before turning a little pink, "if…if you don't mind me asking, of course!"

Itachi gave her a kind smile. "I don't mind, Sasuke is eleven months younger than I am."

"Eleven months!" TenTen exclaimed, slapping he forehead, "your poor mother didn't have much of a break, did she?"

"No," Itachi agreed, "but it was what she wanted."

"So are you 17, then?" Kisame asked.

Itachi nodded, "everyone else is 16, but I believe the exception was made for me because of the potential drama." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "that, and it was probably pretty good PR that both Uchiha children were on the same show."

They fell silent then, gazing into the fire as they kept sleep at bay…for now.

* * *

"Welp, he's down." Kiba noted, looking down at the snoozing Shikamaru.

"Talk about useless," Sasuke muttered.

"It's always good to have a little fodder for the proverbial cannon, Sasuke," Shino told him.

Sasuke looked unimpressed, "it's dark outside, douchebag. Take the sunglasses off."

Shino's sunglasses glinted…somehow, "I think not."

Sakura tugged on Sasuke's shirt in a rather pleading manner. "Let's not fight, guys," she told them, "let's get to know each other better!" She gestured around to her team, "C'mon everyone, let's tell each other three cool facts about ourselves!"

Tayuya scoffed, "what is this, 5th grade?" However, she came over anyways.

All ten Rhinos still in the challenge gathered in a circle on the outskirts of the firelight, getting weird looks from some of the Foxes as they did so.

"Let 'em wonder," Kiba grinned, noting their curious looks and raising his voice a lot, "not like we're planning a kick ass strategy to kick their butts!"

Karin elbowed him and he shut up, though Akamaru gave a little growl at the nerdy girl.

"Okay, I'll go first!" Sakura said, clasping her hands together in front of her excitedly, "I've had my hair dyed like this since I was eight, and haven't changed it since. I _love_ pairing people up and looking for love myself," she said this with a not-so-subtle glance at Sasuke, which made the boy's eyes roll, "And…" she tapped her chin in thought, "oh! I took mixed martial arts for 5 years!" She thew a punch in the air as if to emphasize her point!"

A couple people made noises of skepticism at her last statement, and Sakura looked hurt. "It's true!" She protested, "seriously! I may not look tough but I'm no wuss!"

"Yeah? Then why'd you come in second to last in the race this morning?" Karin asked with a raised brow.

Sakura's face colored to match her hair, "I got a little distracted talking about things with Ino…" She said, with another not so subtle glance at Sasuke.

There was awkward silence for a few seconds, but Temari was quick to break it. "Alright, I'll go next," she said brusquely, "I won student principal at my prestigious high school as a freshman, the only person to do so in the school's history. I have two younger brothers, both of whom I'd give my life for, and I once put my junior prom date in the hospital because he tried to get too touchy feely on the dance floor."

Deidera laughed at the last one. "Nice," he said approvingly. "As for me, I've been sculpting since I was three years old, and have never wanted to do anything else with my life. If I win the money, I'm going to open my own art studio, and I've never had a haircut!" He grabbed his very long ponytail in his hands and wiggled it around for emphasis.

And around they went, sharing their stories.

Sasuke had won several modeling contests and athletic competitions, once accidentally swung a golf club into Itachi's head, and had a soft spot for tomatoes.

Tayuya boasted that she had sent no less than fourteen people to the hospital, though she claimed most of them were in self defense, coming from a bad neighborhood and all. She had never worn anything pink, and had a tattoo on her butt cheek.

"On your butt?!" Fu winced, rubbing her own butt subconsciously as she lay on her stomach, "did it hurt?"

"Not to me," Tayuya boasted, thumping her chest, "sure, it wasn't a _pleasant experience_, but it was fine?"

"What is it?" Sasuke asked, trying and failing not to look interested.

Tayuya gave him a lewd grin, "maybe you'll find out one day, _hottie_."

Sasuke blanched as Kiba and Fu erupted into laughter. "I'd rather die," he muttered amidst the laughter.

* * *

**(Confessional: Tayuya.) **

Tayuya gives a wicked grin. "Man, messing with people is SO much fun!"

**(End Confessional: Tayuya.)**

* * *

Kiba was deathly allergic to cats but loved animals, hence his obsession with dogs. He found Akamaru on the side of the road as a malnourished, weak little puppy and restored his health, and he was named after his dead grandfather, who had helped raise him as he never knew his father.

Shino stated to have an eye condition that meant he was super susceptible to light, hence why he wore sunglasses all the time. Sasuke tried not to look guilty when he learned this. He also had several dozen different insect farms at home, and had won several local "Face Your Fears!" Contests as they almost always involved bugs and he had absolutely zero fear of them.

Karin had graduated high school two years early and was enrolled in college despite only being 16, something that impressed most of her teammates. She was an avid gamer and had never played a sport in her life.

Fu had won several cheerleading contests but had broken her ankle a few years earlier and was still slightly recovering from it. She was voted most popular girl in school as a sophomore and was in the top 20 all time in the leaderboards for Questscape.

"You play Questscape too?" Karin asked, looking interested. "Nice."

"Since I was 9," Fu said with a smile, "I blame my older brother, the dork."

"Alright, just you, Konan," Deidera said expectantly, turning to the goth. He was met with a sullen stare.

"Pass," she drawled.

"Oh come on, you can't pass! We all did it!" Kiba argued. Several others made noises of agreement.

The goth rolled her eyes. "Fine, I've been to eighty five punk rock concerts, my natural hair color is a disgusting bleach blonde, and I have my nipples pierced."

Silence settled over the campers at that last statement. It was broken in a classy fashion.

"Niiiiice!" Kiba said with a stupid grin. He was promptly smacked in the back of the head by Temari.

"If any of you make a joke about not believing me and needing proof, I'll kick you in the nuts." Konan said sternly, crossing her arms.

"No one will be making any stupid jokes," Shino assured her, looking at his fellow males. Sasuke seemed unperturbed, but Diedera and Kiba still had stupid grins on their faces.

"Yeah sure," Kiba agreed, "Nip problem — I mean no problem!" He was smacked again by Temari.

"This is going to be a long challenge," Konan rolled her eyes.

* * *

**(Awakeathon timer, 20 hours.) **

Dawn approached and the sun began to rise in the sky. Not much had happened.

"With the sun creeping up," Chris narrated as he reentered the elimination area after having one to bed to sleep, "some of our contestants have found themselves unable to keep their eyes open!" The camera panned to Kurotsuchi, Karin, and Deidera, all of whom were asleep. He camera then also flashed to show Ino by herself, snoozing away, and Shino, who was out cold. "The teams are now tied at 7 campers a piece, and it's time to ramp things up a bit!" He pulled out an airhorn and gave it a sharp blast. This effectively woke up all the sleeping campers. "Shikamaru, Naruto, Kurotsuchi, Deidera, Karin, Ino and Shino. You guys head back to your cabins and get some _actual_ shut-eye. The rest of you, it's time to make things a little bit harder…"

The 7 campers currently out of the challenge stumbled their way back to their cabins, eager to get some sleep. Chris watched them go, and once they were out of sight turned to the remaining 14 campers. "We're almost at the 24 hour mark, guys, so look alive!"

As if on cue, Lee hit the deck with a mighty snore.

"Would someone wake him up and get him out of here?" Chris asked the others.

"Bro! You're out, don't pout," Bee told Lee, shaking his shoulder so the boy re-awoke.

"Hm?!" He slurred, "Oh! I was overcome, drat!" He pounded the dirt with a fist but really just looked tired. "Back to the cabins, I presume?"

Bee nodded, "It'll be okay, just get on your way, ya fool!" He said, giving him a light noogie.

As Lee trudged off, Chris returned his attention back to the papers still in the challenge. "Right, back on track, it's time to dazzle you all with an exciting story! A tale of great adventure and amazing characters!" He pulled out a large, thick tome and plopped it down on the oil barrel.

"Ooh, sounds exciting," TenTen whispered to Hinata, who nodded.

"A _history _of Canada, the Pop-Up book." Chris said in a soothing tone. "Chapter one: The Beaver. The national animal and a 'dam' fine hat."

Every single camper groaned.

* * *

**(Confessional: Bee.)**

Bee shakes his head, "That man ain't slick and he ain't a trick, he's just a DICK!"

**(End Confessional: Bee.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Kiba.)**

Kiba groans dramatically, "it was like being in history class all over again!" He buries his face in his hands, "I swore I'd never go back!"

**(End Confessional: Kiba.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)**

Konan looks at the camera with her usual deadpan stare. "That was sick and twisted, McLean. Maybe there's hope for you yet." She gives a respectful nod.

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

"So," Kiba turned to Konan in a desperate attempt to drown out Chris's historical droning, "How long have you been goth?"

Konan shot him a suspicious glance, "Since freshman year of high school. Why do you care?"

Kiba shrugged, reaching up tp the top of his hoodie and plucking Akamru off. He gave him a big smooch on the forehead. "Honestly, I'd rather just talk to you than listen to Chris droning," he held out the puppy for her to pet, and Konan idly scratched under his chin.

"Careful, he'll drool on you." Kiba warned.

Konan continued her scratching and, sure enough, a big glob of drool plopped onto her wrist. "I don't mind," she told him, shaking the drool off her wrist. "It's a cute dog."

"Isn't he just?!" Kiba gushed, hugging the puppy to his chest and looking fondly at it.

"Oi!" Chris interrupted, glaring at the two, "No talking during your history lesson. You must _suffer_."

Kiba groaned, and Konan couldn't help but shoot the boy a quick smile.

* * *

**(Awakeathon Timer: 30 hours.) **

The sun was now beginning to set again, and Chris finally looked up from his book. "And that's the end of chapter 10."

"It's over," Kisame groaned, rubbing his tired eyes with a big hand.

"Finally," TenTen agreed, also looking exhausted. Next to her, Hinata was sleeping peacefully. Fortunately for them, everyone else on the Foxes was still awake.

The Rhinos had taken more of a hit during the long history lesson. Fu, Kiba, and Sakura were all sleeping.

"Looks like the Foxes have a person advantage," Chris noted, before turning to look at the horizon. "And with dinner time on the horizon, I've given you guys the pleasure of making turkey sandwiches!" Chef arrived with a cart and he tossed all 9 contestants left in the contest a bottle of water and a turkey sandwich enclosed in a ziplock bag. "Thirty-hours, guys, not too bad. Chow down, and I'll be back in a couple hours for the next bit of _fun_!"

"I don't like the way he says fun," Temari grumbled, opening her baggie and beginning to eat her sandwich, "and turkey just makes you sleepier."

"Not like we have much of a choice," Sasuke pointed out, taking a bite of his own sandwich, "I'd take sleepy over hungry."

"How're you holding up, Karui?" TenTen asked, looking at the sleepy hothead.

"I"m fine enough," Karui grumbled through a mouthful of food, "I should be good to make it through the night, as long as there's no funny business Chris pulls."

"Win we will, victory we instill, the Rhinos will swallow that pill," Bee sang, making Karui roll her eyes.

"Would you stop with the rapping?" She asked, "it's so annoying."

Bee looked offended, "no way, no how, you don't like the rapping? The problem is with thou."

Kisame barked out a laugh and shook his head, and TenTen gave the fashionable black boy a confused look.

* * *

**(Awakeathon Timer: 34 hours.)**

It was now officially night time, but all nine campers were still awake. All the contestants who had fallen asleep previously had been escorted back to their cabins, and Chris arrived with two large speakers and a boom box. "For the next three hours, no talking will be permitted," Chris told them, setting up the speakers and inserting a tape into the boom box.

"What are you playing?" Tayuya said warily, eyeing the boom box apprehensively.

"Probably nothing good," Konan sighed.

Chris pressed the "Play" button and a soft, lilting piano tune came out. "Nothing like some relaxing classical music to get the mind at ease," he said happily, enjoying the way the campers all immediately seemed a little sleepier, "nothing better to fall asleep to than some soothing, calming music!"

Temari gulped, "this is gonna be a tough three hours…"

"No talking!" Chris snapped, and the Alpha-Female winced.

* * *

**(Awakeathon Timer: 37 hours.)**

It was about two in the morning, and the darkness around the fire was absolute. Crickets chirped merrily in the shadows and Chris was at the oil barrel, nose buried in his smartphone. The soft music still played.

The tape finally ended, and Temari let out a sigh of relief. The poor girl was barely holding on, and had horrible bags under her eyes. She looked at her only remaining teammate, Konan, and then down at the two sleeping forms of Sasuke and Tayuya.

"They fought well," Konan noted, finally starting to show signs of being tired.

"That they did," Temari yawned, turning to look at the other team. "They fought better, it seems."

It was true. While Karui and TenTen had fallen asleep, the Foxes still had one extra person with Bee, Kisame and Itachi still awake.

Kisame was staring into the roaring fire, barely blinking. TenTen had fallen asleep with her head leaning on his shoulder, and he gently shifted her to the ground so he could stand up and stretch.

"Thank God that's over," he grumbled.

"That was tough, I admit," Itachi agreed, rubbing at his eyes.

"No big deal, ya hear? We got this in the saggy bag!" Bee gloated.

"You guys may have an extra person," Temari allowed, "but Konan and I have this in the bag, right Konan?" She turned to the goth, who gave a half-hearted nod. Temari frowned, "not exactly the kind of reaction I was looking for, but whatever."

"Happy to disappoint," she said drolly.

The camera cut to the five faces of Kisame, Itachi, Bee, Konan and Temari as they glared at each other determinedly.

"And now, we wait," Chris grinned.

* * *

**(Awakeathon Timer: 40 hours.)**

It was another three hours before the next camper fell. Kisame hit the dirt after an honorable journey, but it was not enough.

Temari followed soon after at hour 42, and then Bee at hour 44.

It was all down to Konan for the Rhinos against Itachi for the Foxes.

* * *

**(Awakethon Timer: 46 hours.)**

"And we're just a couple hours away from the two day mark!" Chris announced, looking at his watch, which currently red 1pm in the afternoon. "Itachi and Konan look to be on their last legs, though, I wonder who's going down first?"

Konan was sitting on the ground, legs crossed and palms on the ground, looking up at the sun in the sky.

Itachi was cross legged, hands on his knees as he stared down at the ground.

After another couple of minutes, one camper slumped over, asleep.

"And it's over! The winner of the Awakeathon is…Konan!" Chris cut to the victorious goth as she smirked and slumped back. "Everyone make sure to get some sleep," he added, "The Foxes are eliminating someone…tonight!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Bee.)**

Bee shakes his head, "Itachi lost it for us, man. Not cool. Not cool at all."

**(End Confessional: Bee.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)**

Konan has her face mashed into the side of the Confessional, and she is snoring loudly.

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

Most of the campers were napping, trying to make up for lost sleep during the Awakeathon.

Bee, Naruto and Lee were not among those. The three boys were currently on the porch of their cabin, with Kisame and Itachi sleeping inside. Bee was extremely tired, but Naruto and Lee had been out fairly early and were rested enough. Besides, there was something the rapper wanted to discuss.

"Itachi?" Lee repeated, "why do you think we should vote for him?"

"The fool lost us the challenge!" Bee exclaimed. "Besides, he's rich enough already, who needs $100,000 when you're a freakin' billionaire."

"Good enough for me," Naruto shrugged, "I don't know him well enough and he's super quiet and weird. Not like us!"

"We got the best alliance on the island, for sure!" Bee smirked. "We'll dominate this team!"

"Woot!" Lee and Naruto hooted, all three going in for a major fist bump.

"Alright," Bee continued, getting up from his shoddy chair and yawning, "ya boy is gonna catch some Z's, if you please."

"Alright dude, see you at dinner," Naruto said, standing up with Lee. "Wanna go swimming?" He asked the bowl cut.

"Last one there is a rotten egg!" Lee grinned, and the two took off towards the water.

Bee went inside, climbed to the top bed of his bunk and collapsed, snoring within seconds. Kisame, from the bunk underneath him, opened an eye and grimaced.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

Kisame shakes his head. "Those morons should learn to keep their voices down, or at least discuss strategies a little more _quietly_." He puts a hand to his chin and rubs it thoughtfully, "Hmm…but what to do with this information?"

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

_Knock knock_.

The Fox ladies were all awake except for Karui, and they all jumped at the sudden noise. TenTen went over and opened the door to be greeted by Kisame. "Hey Kisame," She smiled at him, "what's up?"

"Ladies," Kisame greeted politely, taking a couple of steps towards them, "there's something I need to discuss with you." He grinned as the girls looked at each other curiously.

* * *

Shino was the only one awake in the Rhino cabin. Kiba and Sasuke were exhausted, and Shikamaru was taking a nap despite being second out in the challenge. He didn't know where Deidera was, but he did note that the other dresser now had all eleven Rhinos on it. He stood up from his bunk and went over to the figurines representing the Foxes. He picked up the little one with sunglasses and studied it. He was upset that he had been one of the first out in the Awakeathon, and he knew he needed to do better in challenges to be considered worthy of keeping around when the inevitable first loss came.

Someone shifted in the bed next to him and Kiba let out a large yawn. Akamaru, on the pillow next to his face, sniffed him gently. Kiba sat up and stretched his arms out over his head, giving another obnoxious yawn.

"Yo, Shino," he greeted, absentmindedly scratching Akamaru behind the ears. "Two wins in a row, not bad, huh?"

"Indeed," Shino agreed, setting down the figurine of himself. "Though my performance wasn't as good as I wanted it to be."

"Nah, don't worry about it," Kiba assured him, stepping out from his bed in his doggy-bone boxers. He rummaged around his messy bed area and located his pants, shirt, and hoodie. Pulling them on, he turned back to Shino, "even if you didn't do amazing, we still won so it won't even matter."

"But what about in future challenges when we do lose?" Shino told him, "when people look back I want to be seen as useful."

Kiba walked over and clapped him on the back, "Don't worry dude, you'll have plenty of time to shine," he grinned at him, "for now though, let's just enjoy the victory!"

"I appreciate all the team spirit," Came Sasuke's tired drawl from behind them, "but can you guys leave? I'm really damn tired."

"Sorry," Shino apologized, "we'll leave."

* * *

**(Confessional: Shino.)**

A beetle is crawling on Shino's face, but he doesn't seem to mind. "Kiba is a good guy. He'd make a useful ally."

**(End Confessional: Shino.)**

* * *

Konan, Tayuya, and Temari were sleeping in their cabin, but Sakura, Fu, and Karin were hanging out in the Mess Hall.

"Man, I thought Konan was a little weird at first," Fu admitted, hands clasped around a steaming mug of tea, "but she totally clutched it for us today."

Sakura was looking out the window at the setting sun. "Yeah, she was amazing! Winning two challenges in a row is great!"

Karin crossed her arms on the table in her seat next to Fu, "I don't know, we can't get complacent. Two losses in a row is just going to spur them to try harder in the next challenge."

Fu waved a dismissive hand, "we'll be fine! Soon the numbers advantage will be enough to just continuously crush them into the dirt."

Karin rolled her eyes but stayed silent.

* * *

**(Confessional: Karin.)**

Karin adjusts her glasses, "the other girls on my team are a little too confident. We need to keep aware that the more victories we accumulate, the harder it'll be to keep them going."

**(End Confessional: Karin.)**

* * *

Dinner came and went uneventfully, and it wasn't long until Chris entered the Mess Hall. "Alright Foxes, it's time for the elimination ceremony! Let's get moving."

"Ooh, wait!" A voice from the Rhinos alerted all the Foxes as Deidera stood up. He began pulling figurines out of his deep pockets and tossing them at the Foxes. They all caught them and realized it was figurines of themselves.

"If you get kicked off, keep it as a momento, hn. We have a little thing set up in our cabin, so make sure you drop 'em off if you make it, hn!"

The Foxes looked at them and shrugged. "Mine is so cute!" Ino squealed, poking at the really long ponytail of hers.

"Yes yes, very nice," Chris said impatiently, "let's go!"

The Foxes headed out into the night, following the host.

"I wonder who they're gonna boot?" Temari wondered once the Rhinos were left alone in the Mess Hall.

"I don't know, hopefully a threat." Tayuya said, "That big dude, maybe."

"Guess we'll see tomorrow, hn" Deidera said, "Whoever it is, I hope they keep their figurine!"

* * *

"Ugh, being back here just makes me exhasuted," Kisame grumbled as he sat down onto one of the stumps.

"Indeed," Itachi agreed, taking a seat next to him.

"Campers, there are ten of you here but only nine marshamllows on the plate," Chris told them somberly, lifting said tray up in his hands for emphasis. "If I do not call your name, you will follow in Sai's footsteps and be forced to walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and leave Total Drama Island for good. And you can't come back…_ever_."

The fire flared dramatically as he finished his speech, and it brightly illuminated all ten nervous faces of the campers before bringing back everything into shadow.

"If I call your name, come get a marshmallow. Hinata."

The shy girl looked surprised at being called first, but gave a soft smile as she walked over to Chris and took a marshmallow. She popped it into her mouth and walked over to the fire, warming her hands.

"Naruto!"

"Woot!" Naruto bounded up to get his marshmallow and offered Hinata a high five. She cautiously accepted, blushing.

"TenTen, Ino, and Kurotsuchi!"

The three ladies all shot each other grins as they walked up to get their symbols of safety.

"Karui!"

The hothead smirked and joined the others.

Chris looked at the remaining campers. Lee was looking very nervous about being in the bottom four again, but Kisame, Itachi and Bee all looked nonplussed.

"Only three marshmallows left," Chris said, looking between the four boys. "But…Kisame, you're safe, dude."

Kisame nodded and joined the others.

"The penultimate marshmallow goes to…Lee."

"Oh thank goodness!" Lee whimpered, bounding over to the fire and exchanging a high-five with Naruto.

"Bee, Itachi, this is the final marshmallow of the night," Chris told them. Both boys still looked like they weren't very worried, though Kisame was glaring at Bee while Naruto and Lee clutched each other in fear of their friend.

"The person that is safe is…

…

…

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…

…

…

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Itachi."

"What?!" Bee exclaimed in shock as Itachi calmly got up and joined the others. "Me? Why?!"

Kisame exhaled a loud breath and walked up to the rapper. "Next time you're making strategies and plotting to kick people off, do yourself a favor and make sure you keep your voice down."

Bee digested this and then smacked his hand to his forehead. "You heard! That's absurd, oh man…" He slumped over in defeat.

"No hard feelings, you just tipped your hand a little early on in the game," Kisame grinned, extending his hand for a handshake. In the back, Lee and Naruto watched on with trembling lips.

Bee studied the big man but eventually went in for a handshake. "Fair enough," The rapper said, still looking put out. "Looks like my fat mouth actually got me into trouble." He chuckled darkly and shook his head.

"We'll miss you, buddy!" Naruto suddenly howled, rushing the big guy for a bear hug. Lee was right behind him.

"Easy there," Bee grinned, patting the two doofuses on the top of their heads. "Just make sure you stay in line with your teammates and don't do anything too crazy. Play smart, ya fools. Understand me?"

The two looked up at him through comically teary eyes and nodded rapidly. "We won't let you down," Naruto blubbered. "We will honor your memory, fallen comrade!" Lee added.

"Bee, you've been eliminated." Chris told him unnecessarily. He gestured to his luggage, which had been brought to them by Chef. "Time for you to go. Any last words?"

Bee dug into his pocket and pulled out Deidera's figurine of himself. He turned to his team and gave them a massive wave, figurine still in hand. "I tipped my hand to early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

Most of the team waved goodbye to him, with noticeable exceptions being Karui and Itachi.

"Alrighty then," Chris said as Bee walked off screen, "you nine are safe…for now. Scram!"

The nine headed off to bed, and Chris turned to the camera. "Our second camper has been eliminated! Who's going home next? Find out right here, next time, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals:**_

Bee: Itachi, I'm sure you can get over your loss by buying a nice car or something.

Hinata: Itachi seems like a really nice guy, so I'm gonna do what Kisame suggested and vote for Bee. S-sorry!

Ino: Itachi is _way _too much of a hottie to go this early. Bee, you're annoying and went after the wrong person!

Itachi: It seems that most of the other boys on the team are conspiring to get me eliminated. I'm not worried though, I don't think they have the numbers. I vote for Bee.

Karui: Vote off Bee? No freakin' problem! It hurts to kick out a brother, but man he's just annoying!

Kisame: *Grinning* See ya, Bee. Guess you buzzed a little too loudly.

Kurotsuchi: Itachi didn't really do anything wrong and almost won us the challenge. Bee seems to be a little too schemey.

Lee: I apologize Itachi, but you must go!

Naruto: One of the rich boys is going down! I'd feel sorry if they weren't all so stupid rich!

TenTen: Kisame's got a good plan. I vote for Bee.

* * *

_**Votes:** _

Bee: 7 votes - (Hinata, Ino, Itachi, Karui, Kisame, Kurotsuchi, TenTen).

Itachi: 3 votes - (Bee, Lee, Naruto).

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Tayuya, Sasuke, Kiba, Fu, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai, Bee.**_

* * *

_**Last Words:**_

**Sai** **-** "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee - **"I tipped my hand to early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

* * *

**And Bee is gone! He was fun to write, sort of. Coming up with lame rhymes for all of his lines was hard! **

**We had some good developments here, and I'm toying with the idea of several potential relationships. I'm testing the waters to see what you all think.**

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed! I'll try and update this within a week or two. **


	4. Dodgebrawl!

**Just a heads up: Next chapter is Rest Day #1. These are shorter chapters after every three eliminations that are focused on the characters and their developing bonds and problems with each other. It'll be half fluff, half actual development. So yeah, keep an eye out for that!**

**Okay, onto the next chapter! Let's jump right in.**

* * *

"Last time, on Total Drama Island! The campers got their first taste of how _brutal_ this show can be!" The campers were shown tiredly standing around the starting line for the long run before breakfast. "After a long run without breakfast and a feast meant to make 'em sleepy, they were subjected to the Awakeathon," A smash cut of several vampers looking shocked at the reveal was put on the screen. "One by one they dropped, until _Konan_ won it for the Rhinos!" A sleep Itachi and Konan were shown, but Itachi fell to the ground, asleep, and Konan smirked in victory. "Bee and his buddies weren't too happy about the loss, and conspired to kick the rich boy off," Bee, Lee and Naruto had their meetings, "but Kisame overheard them…not that they were being very subtle…and went to the girls to tell them all about Bee's shenanigans." Kisame knocked on the girls cabin door and smiled at them. "Thus, it was strategy-wannabe Bee that left via the Dock of Shame, though the big guy took it pretty well." Bee looked disappointed, but was then shown shaking Kisame's hand. "We're down two contestants, and one more is leaving tonight? Who's it gonna be? Find out right now, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

The sun was shining merrily in the sky as the next day began on Total Drama Island. Birds chirped and little fuzzy squirrels basked in the sunlight. Everything was just beautiful.

The camera smash cut to Konan's exhausted face. Her bags were even more proiment and her purple hair was disheveled as she stared forlornly at her breakfast.

Currently all twenty campers were eating breakfast in the Mess Hall. Notably, Itachi was also looking really tired, but he seemed to be a bit more alert than Konan was.

"We have to break our losing streak today," Ino said to her team, looking annoyed.

"Well, we've shaved some of the deadweight off the team, so maybe we'll do better," Karui said, poking at her oatmeal half-heartedly.

"Bee was not deadweight!" Naruto told her angrily, "he didn't deserve to go home!" He turned to glare at Kisame, "and it's your fault he went home!"

Kisame held his hands up, "it's not my fault that idiot decided to blab where anyone could hear him. I don't think Itachi deserved to go home after how well the did."

"He's super rich," Naruto whined, "why does he even need to be here?"

"I'm here to promote the Uchiha name," Itachi said, tone mellow as per usual, "and to make some friends. Is that so wrong, Naruto?"

Naruto looked a little stumped by this, "Well…I just don't think it's fair. Some of us really could use that money to change our lives, but to you it's just pocket change!"

"One-hundred thousand dollars is _not_ pocket change to me," Itachi said sternly.

While the Foxes continued to bicker, some on the Rhinos couldn't help but overhear their conversation.

"Look at that little twerp," Sasuke snarled, smashing his fork onto the table and bending it. "What the hell does the think he's doing, going after Itachi like that?"

"Aww, you're defending your big brother!" Sakura swooned, "that's so sweet!"

Sasuke blushed lightly, "I'm _not_ defending him," he said, a little too quickly, "I just hate when people go after others for being rich. Its not like we could help where we born."

Sakura rubbed his arm sympathetically, "I know, I know," she told him soothingly, "don't worry, you won't find any of those nasty judgements here!"

Sasuke looked into her earnest, shining face and couldn't help but smile a little. "Well that's a relief, I guess," he said, his tone neutral.

* * *

**(Confessional: Sakura.)**

"He _smiled _at me!" Sakura squeals, clasping her hands together, "Eeeeeeeee!"

**(End Confessional: Sakura.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Itachi.)**

Itachi sighs, "I'm no stranger to being judged harshly for my upbringing. It doesn't help that our parents tend to love to flaunt their success, which automatically gives me and my brother a bad rep." He shakes his head, "No matter, as long as we do well and can show the others that we are not uppity not arrogant, we should be fine.'

**(End Confessional: Itachi.)**

* * *

"Alright guys," Kiba grinned, looking around at his Rhino teammates, "two for two, we got this in the bag!"

"We can't get too confident," Temari warned, "sure, we've won two challenges, but one of them was just because we had Konan," she nodded her head respectfully at the exhausted goth, "and the other we just squeaked out on top."

"Doesn't matter what the challenge is, we'll pound them into dust!" Tayuya said fiercely, smashing her fist into her palm.

"Damn right," Fu agreed, smirking.

It was at that moment Chris walked in, a big grin on his face. "Welcome, campers!" He greeted, "you guys ready for today's _awesome_ challenge?"

Some of the campers, like Lee, Naruto and Kiba, cheered excitedly. Others looked less enthused.

"Follow me then, it's time for it to begin!"

* * *

The twenty teens and Chris walked up to a large glass court.

"Whoa, when did this get here?" Shikamaru asked, looking surprised.

"We had this baby airlifted in last night," Chris smirked. They all walked into the court. It was a standard looking tennis court with wooden floors, straight out of a highschool gymnasium. There was a net at half court and two sets of uncomfortable looking bleacher-benches on the sides. "I hope you guys are ready for an intense game of dodgeball!"

Kisame grinned, cracking his knuckles, "Finally, a challenge I can _really_ get behind." Some of the Rhinos gave the big guy wary looks.

"Oh ho-ho, you guys are _so _going down." Tayuya jeered.

"Um, I've never played dodgeball," Karin admitted, "what are the rules?"

"I'm glad you asked, Karin," Chris told her, "the rules of dodgeball are simple!" He held up a large, red rubber ball. "You try and hit out the other team with the balls. If you hit someone," he threw it at an unsuspecting Naruto, who got smacked in the face. "They're out!" The host held up another ball, "you need to dodge them to avoid getting hit, like so," He threw the ball at Kisame, who athletically leapt to the side to avoid the ball. "Now, you can also use your ball to _deflect _incoming projectiles…Kisame, if you would be so kind?" He gestured at the ball he had just thrown.

Kisame nodded and picked up the ball he had dodged and threw it mildly at the host, who lifted his own ball to deflect it.

"The best way to defend yourself, though, is to _catch_ the ball!" His eyes turned to the sleepy and unsuspecting Konan, and he hurled the ball at her, "like this!"

The ball sped towards Konan, who reacted too late to dodge it, much less catch it. She closed her eyes and waited for impact, but it never came. She opened her eyes to see Kiba holding the ball, glaring at the host.

"Nice catch, Kiba," The host complimented, "now, if we were in a real game, I would be out, and Kiba could bring one of his teammates off the bench back into the game. There will be three rounds, and first team to two wins gets the victory. Losing team boots a player. Any questions?"

Temari raised a hand. "How many people per side?"

"Let's go with 6 a side," Chris told her, "Foxes will have three people sit out each round, and the Rhinos will bench five. Choose up, because the first round stars in five minutes."

"Alright, who's sitting out?" Temari asked as she turned to her team. "I'm pretty good at dodgeball, so I think I can stay in."

"Alright, I'll volunteer," Shikamaru said quickly, walking over to the bench and sitting down.

"Konan should probably sit out too," Kiba said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at the exhausted goth, "she's still wiped out from last challenge." At Temari's nod, Konan went to sit down.

"All I know is I'm in," Tayuya said confidently, "we should be able to crush 'em."

"I can sit out," Fu offered, "I've always been more of a sports-cheerer than a sports player."

"Same," Sakura said nervously.

"I'm not very athletically inclined," Karin admitted, "it'll probably be best for the team if I don't compete."

"Alright," Temari said, "So that's me, Shino, Kiba, Tayuya, Sasuke and Deidera."

"Sweet," Kiba said, taking Akamaru off his head and giving him an affectionate pat, "can someone hold Akamaru while I'm out there? I don't want him to get hit."

Konan wordlessly reached out for the pup, and Kiba handed Akamaru over, grateful.

Over on the Foxes, there was a similar discussion going on.

"Okay, so Kisame and I are definitely in," TenTen said.

"And I'm definitely out," Ino added, "no way am I gonna get beaned by a bunch of hard balls."

Naruto snickered, "phrasing…"

"Well I am definitely playing," Lee said triumphantly, "we shall beat back our foes!"

"If it's all the same to you guys, I wouldn't mind sitting out," Itachi told his team, "I'm still quite tired and I probably wouldn't be too helpful right now."

"That's fine," Kisame said, "we need one more."

"Um…I'll sit out," Hinata offered, "you guys probably don't want me out there anyways…"

"No way that's true," Naruto told her, grinning, "I'm sure you'd be fine, but if you wanna sit out I ain't gonna stop you."

Hinata nodded and went to sit.

"Alright, me, TenTen, Naruto, Lee, Karui and Kurotsuchi," Kisame said, "Should be a good game…" he punched his palm, "to _win._"

Chris walked back into the court, Chef in tow. The big cook was dressed in a classic black-and-white striped referee's uniform and had a big shiny whistle in his mouth. He gave it a sharp blow. "Alright everyone," Chris called, "line up! It's time for heads to roll!"

The six campers playing from each team took a side of the court, whilst the others cheered them on from the bleachers. Notable exceptions were a bored Shikamaru and a sleepy Konan.

"Round one, begin!"

There was pandemonium as all twelve campers hurtled towards the red balls, which were lined up at half court. Kisame got there first and back-heeled a ball away from an approaching Karui. The ball rolled into TenTen's hand and she picked it up, hurling it at the redhead. Karui, to her credit, dove out of the way just in time. Kisame turned back to the ball in front of him and picked it up. He hurled it right at Deidera, who screamed as it blasted him in the face.

"You'll pay for that," Tayuya roared, throwing her own ball at Kisame. The athlete nimbly avoided it, but it hit Naruto, who was behind Kisame.

Chris blew his whistle, and Naruto and Deidera left the field.

For a few seconds, each team surveyed each other, holding onto the balls they held.

Then Shino broke that calm, and hurled his ball at Kurotuschi. The farmer girl raised her ball to block it, and retaliated by throwing her own at Kiba.

"You'll have to better than that!" Kiba taunted as he leapt over the ball.

"Challenge accepted," Kisame smirked, launching a ball into the boy's face. Kiba hit the floor, groaning, then walked off the field. He sat back on the bleachers and held his sore face. Konan held out Akamaru and the dog gave his owner a small lick on the face, making Kiba smile.

"It's on now," Temari said angrily, nailing Kurotsuchi in the stomach with a ball.

"Prepare to suffer my wrath, enemy team!" Lee hooted, doing a couple of spins in the air and hurling his ball towards the other team. Unfortunately, because of his spinning, his aim was off and the ball went careening into the bleachers, nailing Shikamaru in the face.

"Hey!" The slacker complained, rubbing his sore jaw, "is that a foul or what?"

Chef seemed to agree, and blew his whistle. "Bowl-Cut! Sit yo' butt down. Rhinos, get someone in here!"

Fu stepped up, "alright, I got this!" She ran out onto the field, but was immediately slammed in the side of the head, courtesy of TenTen.

* * *

**(Confessional: Fu.)**

Fu nurses a large bruise on the side of her head, "this is why I don't play sports."

**(End Confessional: Fu)**

* * *

As Fu sat back down, Shino and TenTen got each other out with their respective throws. It was now Kisame and Karui versus Temari, Sasuke and Tayuya.

"Let them throw all the balls on their side first," Kisame whispered to Karui, alert to all of the Rhinos movement. "Then we both target one player. Rinse and repeat."

Karui nodded and cracked her knuckles. "Sounds like a plan."

Temari had a strategy of her own, though. "All of us target Karui," Temari said quietly to Tayuya and Sasuke.

"Why not Kisame?" Sasuke asked, "He's more dangerous."

"He could probably dodge all three. She won't be able to and then we won't have to worry about her," Temari told him simply, "just trust me, ok?"

"C'mon you guys!" Fu cheered from the Rhino bench, "easy win! Easy win!"

"Don't give up!" Naruto screamed from the Foxes, "kick their butts, guys!"

The Rhinos sprang into action. Three balls hurtled towards a surprised Karui, and even though Kisame was able to knock one off its path with his own ball, the other two slammed into the girl.

Chef blew his whistle, and Karui hit the bench.

Kisame growled as he was faced down against three tough opponents. He wasn't going down without a fight, though. He picked up one of the balls used to hit Karui and whipped it at Sasuke, who deflected it. The Uchiha prepared to throw his own ball, but was smacked in the stomach by another ball Kisame had thrown.

"Jeez, he's fast," Sasuke grumbled, holding his stomach as he hit the bench.

Tayuya hurled her ball at the now unarmed Kisame, but he swiped it out of the air. He threw it at Temari, hoping to secure the victory, but Temari was just able to snag the ball and catch it.

"Damnit!" Kisame said, annoyed.

Chef blew his whistle. "Since Strongboy and Bossypants each caught a ball, they nullify each other! Temari is the last one for the Rhinos, so they win round one!"

The Rhinos cheered.

"Nice work, guys," Karin said approvingly.

"We rock!" Kiba grinned.

"Good stuff, hn!" Deidera agreed. "We just have to win the next one and it's three in a row!"

"Alright, who's going in?" Temari asked, "Shikamaru, Sakura, you guys didn't go in last game."

"Okay, let's do it," Sakura said, though she looked a little nervous.

"No thanks," Shikamaru drawled, "I'm good."

Temari frowned down at him, "everyone should participate. We're a team."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes, "well you know, you guys kicked so much butt in the last round, I don't wanna mess up your mojo. Besides, you probably don't want me out there, I'm bad at dodgeball."

Temari didn't look convinced, but at that moment Chef blew his whistle, signaling the start of the next round. "Fine," she relented.

* * *

**(Confessional: Temari.)**

"That slacker needs to get his act together," Temari shakes her head, "So far he chickened out in the cliff dive, fell asleep super early in the Awakeathon, and now is being a pain about playing dodgeball!" She shakes her head, exasperated, "it's almost like he _wants_ to go home!"

**(End Confessional: Temari.)**

* * *

"Good try, Kisame," Hinata told him shyly.

"Yeah, you almost had 'em," Naruto agreed, punching his hand. "This time will be different, I won't be blindsided!"

"Yeah, I'm sure you're gonna be so helpful." Karui said sarcastically, and Naruto shot her a glare.

"I can sit out," Kurotuschi offered, "I'm not as good as I thought I'd be."

"I think Lee should hit the bench too," TenTen said, looking at Lee, "er, no offense, but you did get us penalized."

Lee looked devastated, "I let my over-exhuberance get the best of me," he said, eyes shining with ashamed tears, "I accept the punishment of benchwarmer!"

"Err…right," TenTen gave the boy a strange look, "ok then, who's coming in if Kurotsuchi and Lee are sitting out?"

"I'd really rather not," Ino said, "I'm bad and I don't wanna get hit, but if you guys really need me in, I guess I can suck it up…"

"I'll come in," Hinata offered, "I don't mind getting hit, really…"

"Do you mind staying in an extra round?" Kisame asked Kurotsuchi, "I know you don't think you're good, but you're probably better than Ino, and Itachi is still exhausted." He shot a coy look at Ino, "no offense, gorgeous."

Ino smiled at him, "none taken, and my pleasure."

"Alright, let's get out there," TenTen said, her tone clipped.

* * *

**(Confessional: Hinata.)**

Hinata takes a deep breath. "Alright, it's time to finally prove my worth to the team. I'm going to impress Nar-…she stops herself, "um, my team! My _entire_ team!" She blushes profusely and buries her head in her hands, "oh my gosh, why'd I say that!?"

**(End Confessional: Hinata.)**

* * *

"Round two, _begin_!" Chef barked.

There was another flurry of chaos as the teens pounded forwards towards the balls. In the chaos, Kurotsuchi, Shino, and Temari were hit.

"Crap," Temari complained, sitting down with Shino.

"_Capitalize_," Kisame snarled, throwing another ball at Tayuya. She dodged it and threw one back at him, but Hinata jumped in front and deflected it away with a ball of her own.

"Nice one," Kisame barked, quickly grabbing the smaller girl by the waist and swinging both himself and her out of the way of a volley thrown by Fu and Kiba.

"Eep!" The girl squeaked, taken aback by the sudden swinging. She landed gracefully, though, and took aim at Kiba. The boy was still recovering from his throw, and couldn't get out of the way.

"Nice one, Hinata!" Naruto grinned, running by the girl and throwing his ball at Sakura. Sakura held up her ball to deflect it, but misjudged the direction of the ball and got smacked in the chest.

"Keep pushing them back," Kisame continued, looking at Fu and Tayuya, the only two left.

"Oh no," Fu whimpered.

"This could be bad," Tayuya agreed, "but we ain't going down without a fight!" She picked up her ball and nailed TenTen with it, then took the ball out of Fu's hand and hit Naruto.

Fu, without a ball to protect herself, was easily hit out by Kisame, and he and Hinata were able to overpower Tayuya and claim the next round.

"Round two goes to the Foxes! Last round is up next!"

* * *

"Ugh, what the hell happened?" Tayuya complained as the Rhinos regrouped, "that was so quick, and so _weak_!"

"They got some lucky hits early on," Shino said, also annoyed he had been eliminated so early. "Its happens, let's just win this last round."

"We need to make some swaps, and change up our tactics," Sasuke suggested, "Shikamaru, Karin, you guys haven't gone in yet, why don't you guys hop in?"

"Ugh, I guess," Karin sighed, "just don't expect much from me, I've never played before."

"Maybe you can be our tactics woman?" Fu suggested brightly. "You're pretty smart, right?"

"Well I'm gonna pass," Shikamaru said, "this whole challenge is such a drag."

Temari gave him an annoyed look, "you _do_ realize what's going to happen if we lose, right? Your lack of participation will be _noted_."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes, nonplussed. "You guys probably just want me to go out there and do badly so you can vote me off since I did badly. I'm telling you, I'm not going in and it's for the betterment of the team."

"Just let him seal his fate," Sasuke snapped, "if we lose, he's gone. Let's get moving."

The rest of the Rhinos seemed to agree, and a few glares were thrown Shikamaru's way, but the slacker seemed to remain completely bored. Temari, Sasuke, Karin, Kiba, Shino and Tayuya headed out onto the field.

* * *

"Nice work!" Ino grinned, "you guys totally killed it out there!"

Kisame gave his team a thumbs up, a self-satisfied grin plastered on his face. "Alright, they won't let us wipe them that quickly again, so we'll need some sort of strategy…"

"Okay, how about we just bum rush them one by one?" Naruto suggested.

"Err…bum rush?" Kisame repeated, eyebrow raised.

"Forget it," Karui snapped, "he was probably going to suggest something _stupid_."

"No no," Kisame told her, raising his hand in a placating gesture, "if Naruto has something useful to offer the team, I want to hear it." He turned to the blonde knucklehead, "what did you have in mind?"

"Well, we just take 'em out one at a time," Naruto said, "wait for them to throw the balls, and then they'll all be on our side. We each get one and throw at one person. No _way_ they'll be able to dodge them all! Then we dodge their next volley and do it again! Then again and again and again and again until we win!"

The rest of the Foxes thought about this.

"That might not be a bad strategy," TenTen said, "as long as we can trust ourselves to dodge their barrages, it should work."

"I agree," Lee flashed a thumbs up, "What a glorious idea!"

"Alright, Hinata, you come out with us again," Karui said, "you did well back there, give yourself some more credit."

Hinata blushed a little and smiled, "Okay!"

"Lee, Itachi and Ino, be our cheerleaders, eh?" Naruto grinned at them. He slammed his palm into his fist, "it's time to kick some butt!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Karui.)**

Karui rolls her eyes, "looks like the little doofus _can_ be useful. Color me surprised."

**(End Confessional: Karui.)**

* * *

"Alright, time for the final game," Chef barked, "let's go!" He blew the whistle.

The six Rhinos ran for the balls. Shockingly, all six Foxes stayed towards the back of the court, putting the most space between their opponents as they could.

"What are they doing?" Temari asked, puzzled.

"Don't worry about it, it's free shots!" Tayuya said, taking her ball and throwing it at TenTen. TenTen nimbly dodged it, but didn't pick it back up.

One by one or two by two, the Rhinos all threw their balls, and they weren't able to hit a single person out.

"Shit, we don't have any balls left," Tayuya said, eyes widening as they realized the Foxes strategy.

Temari took a couple steps back, "no problem, they dodged all of ours, we'll dodge all of theirs. Get ready."

"Cute problem solving, Pigtails," Kisame grinned as he and the rest of the Foxes picked up a ball. "But our strategy is a _little_ different than that. Hwah!" He hurled his ball, and two of the others threw their ball right at Temari. As proficient as Temari was, she was not good enough to dodge all three balls, and she was out.

"What the-" Before Tayuya could react, three more balls hit her.

"Oh no, our two best players!" Sakura whimpered from the bench.

Sasuke, Shino, Karin, and Kiba were left for the Rhinos.

"Karin," Sasuke said, trying not to let panic creep into his voice, "any ideas?"

Karin wracked her brains, "I think the best thing to do is copy their strategy and hope we can get them out first. Without Temari and Tayuya though, the chances of success are not very good…"

"Well we can't give up!" Kiba told her, "Let's go!" He picked up a ball and looked at the enemy team, "who do we target first?"

"Hmm, seems they've caught on," Naruto frowned, rubbing his chin cautiously, "welp, we have the numbers advantage, so it shouldn't matter…"

"Just stay on your toes, everyone!" TenTen barked, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.

As one, the four Rhinos threw their balls at Kisame. The athlete laughed as he dodged one, caught another, and used the ball he caught to deflect the other two.

Most of the others stared at him in shock.

* * *

**(Confessional: TenTen.)**

TenTen fans herself, a slightly dreamy look on her face. "Did you _see_ that? Wow…"

**(End Confessional: TenTen.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

Kisame flexes his muscles, "oh yes, I _am_ good…"

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

"Broody-Boy, your ball was caught! Hit the bench!" Chef barked from the referees chair. Sasuke huffed and left the court. He pointed at the Fox bench, "Bowlcut, get in here!"

"Great, we're so screwed!" Fu complained as Lee joined the Foxes, making it 7-3.

"It's not over yet?" Deidera offered, but he didn't look very optimistic.

"Let's take these Rhinos to the zoo!" Karui smirked, and the six Foxes cocked their arms back and slammed out poor Kiba.

Karin and Shino looked at each other. "Looks like this is our last stand," Shino said somberly, picking up one of the balls. "Let it be memorable." He cocked his arm back and _hurled_ a ball at Karui, and it got her out.

"I don't know about that," Karin muttered, picking up a ball of her own and throwing it at Hinata. The girl was able to deflect it away.

"We still have most of the balls," Shino said quickly, noting that the two balls they had just thrown were being kept by the Foxes. "Let's each throw one at TenTen." They did, and TenTen was out too.

"Great, now it's only 5-2," Karin said flatly.

"Attitude like that is not helpful," Shino chided, the sunlight glinting off his sunglasses, "stay focused, their attack is coming soon."

And so it was. Now having four balls, everyone but Lee on the Foxes decided to aim for Shino, who seemed to be pulling the strings now. The bug boy was prepared for this, and made it his goal to at least catch one of the balls. He got hit by the other three, and groaned in pain.

Chef blew his whistle. "Shino's out! He caught Kisame's ball though, so he's out!" He pointed at Temari, "You! You're back in."

Everyone gasped. It seemed the tables had turned…or at least evened out slightly.

"Nice work, Shino," Temari complimented, giving the boy a high five as he sat down. She walked back out to the field.

It was now Karin and Temari versus Hinata, Naruto, Kurotsuchi and Lee.

"Let's do this!" Temari growled. Karin, emboldened by her teammates presence, picked up a ball. She and Temari hurled them at Lee, but the boy was surprisingly able to dodge both with ease.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Lee boasted, picking up a ball and preparing to throw.

"Hey!" Kurotsuchi said quickly, running up to the boy and taking the ball from his hands. "Don't throw another one! You'll get us penalized again!"

"Give that back!" Lee scolded, annoyed. "I have every right to participate in this!"

As the two continued to bicker, Karin and Temari took the opportunity to take them both out. Kurotsuchi and Lee gasped as they were pelted by balls.

"Ohmygod, they're blowing it." Ino gasped from the bench.

"We still have Hinata, maybe there's a chance?" TenTen said hopefully.

"Hey! Naruto is still out there too," Lee chided as he sat down next to the black belt.

All four of the remaining contestants in the dodgeball game had a ball. They sized each other up, unwilling to waste their deflecting tool.

It was finally Temari that lost patience. "Let's go Karin," she said, "get Hinata!"

Hinata let out a frightened 'eep' as two balls went hurtling towards her. She held up her ball and deflected one, but the other caught her in the stomach.

"Yes!" Temari and Karin cheered, "just one left now!"

"Don't underestimate me!" Naruto snapped, surprising most of the others with his serious tone. "I'm not losing this!" He picked up his ball and showed it to them. "You two are going down!"

Temari smirked, "wow, I'm terrified…just give up now, you're toast!"

"Never!" Naruto lifted the ball and hurled it towards Karin. The nerdy girl, who didn't have a ball in her hands to deflect, awkwardly tried to catch the ball. She misjudged it though, and it hit her clenched fists, getting her out.

"Hah, you're wide open!" Temari grinned, hurling her ball at Naruto, who was still extended from his throw at Karin. "It's over!"

"No!" Karui groaned from the Fox bench.

"Yes!" Kiba cheered from the Rhinos.

The ball whizzed towards Naruto's extended shoulder. It got closer and closer…

_**Whap.**_

In one swift motion, Naruto retracted his body back into its normal position and turned his right arm, catching the incoming ball with his palm facing out to the right. He held it in one hand and grinned. "You're right! It _is_ over."

Silence filled the court.

"And Naruto pulls off the surprise win!" Chris announced, "it looks like the Foxes finally win their first challenge!"

"Holy shit!" Karui said from the Fox bench. All of the Foxes were looking slack-jawed except for Lee, who was beaming proudly, and Hinata, who couldn't help but smile at Naruto. "You did it!"

The Foxes erupted into cheers.

"Woohoo!" Naruto cheered, jumping up and down like a hooligan. "I did it! I'm the best! Woohoohoo!"

"Well done, Naruto," Itachi congratulated, still tired.

Kisame ruffled the blonde's hair, "looks like you _can_ pull your weight," he said approvingly.

"Told ya," Naruto told the big man, grinning.

Over on the Rhinos, they too were in complete shock.

"We lost?" Tayuya smacked her forehead, "Temari, how'd you let him catch that!"

"I didn't think the twerp would catch it!" Temari shot back.

"Yeah, it wasn't Temari's fault," Sasuke defended the girl, "that doofus catching it was just a freak accident."

"Sure it was," Shikamaru drawled, "that was _pathetic_."

Tayuya whirled to face him. She stalked up to him and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, lifting the scrawny boy up to face level. "You've got some _nerve_ talking shit after not bothering to lift a finger, you little weasel."

Shikamaru just rolled his eyes, "your breath stinks. Put me down you annoying sw—"

His sentence was cut short as Tayuya drew her fist back and slammed it into Shikamaru's face, right below his left eye. She held onto him so he didn't fly back, and reared her fist back for another punch. "This'll teach you, you little brat!" She snarled.

"Tayuya!" Fu said, startled, "stop it!"

"Shut up! He deserves it!" Tayuya was about to punch the dazed Shikamaru again, but Temari caught her arm and held it fast.

"_Ta-yu-ya_," Temari snarled in a tone of voice so incensed that even Tayuya stopped short. "Let. Him. Go."

Tayuya glared at Temari for a moment, and Temari's blue-green eyes flashed dangerously. Tayuya scoffed and threw Shikamaru on the ground. The boy stayed there, holding his face and whimpering.

"What?" Tayuya squared up to Temari, repeating "the little punk deserved it."

"That's no excuse to get violent with a teammate!" Temari spat, jabbing Tayuya in the chest. From the ground, Shikamaru stared up at Temari, startled and surprised.

Tayuya seemed unimpressed, "whatever, you're all just a bunch of wussies." She strode past Temari, bumping her with her shoulder as she went. She spat on Shikamaru's leg, "see you at the elimination ceremony, weasel!" She taunted.

"Tayuya!" Temari said, exasperated. It was too late, though, and Tayuya had already left.

It was dead silent, the only noise was Shikamaru's occasional noises of pain.

"Alright…well, I'm gonna go get some lunch," Deidera said awkwardly, all but running towards the exit. Most of the other Rhinos followed. Only Shikamaru and Temari remained behind.

Temari strode up to the still prone boy. "Are you okay?" She asked brusquely.

Shikamaru raised his hand from his face, and it was already purple and swelling: he'd sport a nasty black eye when all was said and done. "I'll be fine," he said dully, "listen, thanks for—"

"Save it," Temari spat at him, "she's right, y'know? Tayuya? You're just a good-for-nothing slacker. But even useless whiners like you don't deserve to get smacked around."

"Listen, I—"

"I said _save it_!" Temari yelled, making Shikamaru flinch. She turned on her heel and left the boy on the ground. "I don't care what you have to say."

Shikamaru watched the girl leave. She hadn't even bothered to help him to his feet. For the first time on the island, his face registered something other than annoyance or nonchalance.

It was shame.

* * *

**(Confessional: Tayuya.) **

Tayuya shakes her head, annoyed. "Those ungrateful suckers should be _thanking_ me for dealing with that little squirt Shikamaru!" She shakes her head, "I swear to God, some people just don't get it."

**(End Confessional: Tayuya.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Fu.)**

Fu crosses her legs and gives the camera and awkward smile, "well, safe to say our first loss was a total disaster…"

**(End Confessional Fu.)**

* * *

The rest of the day passed with relative smoothness.

On the Foxes, everyone spent lunch celebrating Naruto's victory and Kisame, TenTen and Hinata's excellence in the challenge. After lunch, they all split up to relax in different ways.

On the Rhinos, everyone kept to themselves. After the disaster that had happened after the dodgeball challenge, the thought of holding a meeting to see who would go home had slipped everyone's mind. Most of them spent the afternoon in awkward solitude.

Eventually, the sun began to set, and dinner came and went. The campers found themselves finishing up their meals in the Mess Hall, and Chris finally entered.

"Alrighty, campers. Enjoy your meal?"

"As much as one can enjoy white paste, I guess." Karin said, looking at her meager food with distaste.

"Glad to hear it," Chris said happily, "now, Rhinos, if you'll please come with me!" The eleven Rhinos got up. "It's time for one of your butts to get eliminated. Let's go down to the elimination area."

"I'm gonna go grab my figurines first, hn!" Deidera said quickly.

The eleven campers plus Chris left the hall, and the Foxes watched them go.

"Who do you think they'll cut?" Ino asked the table.

"Probably that Shikamaru kid," Karui said confidently, "the dude seems pretty useless."

"I'd have to agree with Karui," Kisame said, poking idly at his paste.

* * *

The eleven Rhinos were seated at the stumps. The fire crackled merrily in the darkness. Chris stood at his oil barrel, a tray with ten marshmallows perched upon it. He grinned down at the eleven nervous teens.

"Rhinos, this is your first time at the elimination ceremony, so you guys get the whole spiel," he told them, "on this platter I have ten marshmallows. When I call your name, come and get one. If you do _not_ receive a marshmallow, you will be forced to walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and leave Total Drama Island for good." He raised the platter, "and our first marshmallow goes to…"

He dragged out the tension, and the Rhinos couldn't help but buy into the drama. They were all leaning forwards, anxious.

"…Sasuke."

The rich boy smirked and stood up. He walked over to Chris and plucked a marshmallow off the tray.

"Also safe are…Shino and Fu."

The two teens quickly joined Sasuke by the fire.

"Deidera, Kiba, Konan and Sakura."

There are only three marshmallows left," Chris told the four remaining Rhinos: Karin, Shikamaru, Temari and Tayuya. "The next one goes to…Karin."

Karin sighed deeply. She gave Temari a reassuring pat on the shoulder as she passed her to get her marshmallow.

"The penultimate marshmallow goes to….Temari."

Temari gave no visible sigh of relief except for the intensity of her gaze, which softened once her name was called. She quickly joined the other eight safe Rhinos.

"Tayuya, Shikamaru, this is the final marshmallow of the night," Chris told them.

"Pfft, you voted for me?" Tayuya scoffed at Shikamaru, who's shiny black eye was now fully formed. The slacker stayed quiet.

"This marshmallow goes to…" Chris drug out the announcement as a very tense tune began to play.

"…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…"

"Oh, just give me my stupid marshmallow already!" Tayuya snapped.

"…Shikamaru." Chris said, motioning for the lazy boy to come get his marshmallow. The boy in question raised his eyebrows slightly, but didn't need to be told twice. He quickly walked past a shell-shocked Tayuya and grabbed his marshmallow.

Tayuya jumped to her feet, her fists clenched so hard that her knuckles were white. "You have got to be _kidding _me," she snarled, advancing on her old team, "you guys are so dead! So fucking dead!"

Chef intercepted the bully and restrained her.

"Let go of me!" Tayuya yelled, thrashing in the hulking cook's grasp, "put me down!"

"We can only let you go if you behave," Chris said cooly, "it's up to you, do you want to leave with any kind of dignity?"

This seemed to pacify Tayuya, at least for now, and she stopped thrashing. She stomped over to her luggage and grabbed it.

"Any last words?" Chris asked her as she began to stomp down the Dock.

"Yeah, I got some last words!" Tayuya said viciously, "Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also _idiots_! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

None of the Rhinos responded to the barbed comments, and that just seemed to infuriate Tayuya further. She screamed in rage and stomped down the Dock. She stepped onto the Boat of Losers, and it sped off into the night.

Chris turned to the ten Rhinos. "The rest of you are safe…for now."

As all the Rhinos turned to go back to their cabins, Shikamaru subtly grabbed Temari's arm as she walked back. She gave him an annoyed look.

"Look, can I talk to you?" Shikamaru asked quietly as the rest of the Rhinos walked off, unaware of their conversation. "It'll just be a minute."

Temari, calmer than she had been at the dodgeball court, sighed and crossed her arms. The two walked over to the crackling fire. "What is it?" She said impatiently.

Shikamaru scratched his arm awkwardly. "Look, I just wanted to say…thanks for coming to my defense earlier. Tayuya probably would've beaten me to a pulp if you hadn't."

"Don't get the wrong idea," Temari said sternly, "I don't like you, Shikamaru. I think you're obnoxious, lazy, selfish, and a little arrogant." Shikamaru winced at each of these insults, "but I'll never sit by and watch someone get wailed on." She got up in his face, "but know this; you dodged a _major_ bullet tonight. If she hadn't freaked out on you, it'd be _your_ ass on that Boat. Understand me?"

Shikamaru gulped and took a step back. "I know. Look, I'm not trying to imply you did it for me or anything lame like that. I just wanted to say thanks, and that I'm grateful for what you did."

Temari rolled her eyes. "How about this, Shikamaru. If you really are grateful, get your goddamn act together. Don't be deadweight. You want to express your thanks? Show me I made the right decision by voting for Tayuya over you."

With her bit said, she turned and walked away form Shikamaru, who stood staring at her as she left.

* * *

**(Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

His left eye is still swollen and black, but his expression is shocked and a little thoughtful. "Man, she's…something else, alright." He shakes his head, "Maybe I should start trying to pull my weight a little bit."

**(End Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Temari.)**

Temari sighs and shakes her head, "I really do not like that guy at all. If we're lucky, maybe Tayuya's punch knocked some sense into him."

**(End Confessional: Temari.)**

* * *

"Wow," Chris said, walking up to the fire to warm his hands. "That was a shocker! Only three challenges in, and things are already heating up! Who'll be going next," he waved his hands quickly over the top of the flames, "and who'll get burned? Find out next time, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals:**_

Deidera: I vote for Tayuya, hn. She's crazy!

Fu: I can't believe Tayuya totally freaked out? Who'll be next? No way I'm gonna risk getting punched. Bye, Tayuya!

Karin: Wow, this is hard. On one hand, Tayuya is useful in challenges, but on the other, she's a total jerk...I think I'll have to vote for Shikamaru.

Kiba: I gotta vote for Tayuya, you can't just hit away your problems.

Konan: I vote for Shikamaru. Tayuya can be useful, but him? I don't know...

Sakura: Sasuke says we should vote for Shikamaru...but I don't think I can do that! Tayuya is crazy!

Sasuke: I can't say I agree with her methods, but Shikamaru is deadweight. At least Tayuya is good in challenges.

Shikamaru: Not that it matters, but I vote for Tayuya. This whole experience has been such a drag, I'll be glad to go home.

Shino: I vote for Shikamaru.

Tayuya: That useless little weasel is gone! Smell ya later, Shikamaru!

Temari: This is a tough choice. I think I'll have to vote for Tayuya though, we can't have that kind of anarchy on this team.

* * *

_**Votes**_:

Tayuya: 6 votes - (Deidera, Fu, Kiba, Sakura, Shikamaru, Temari).

Shikamaru: 5 votes - (Karin, Konan, Sasuke, Shino, Tayuya).

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Fu, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya.**_

* * *

_**Last Words:**_

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee** \- "I tipped my hand to early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

**Tayuya - **"Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also _idiots_! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

* * *

**And Shikamaru just squeaks by! Violence is never the answer, and Tayuya learned that the hard way. Seems like our resident slacker might finally have a fire under his butt. **

**I hope you guys enjoyed the episode! See you next time for the Rest Day! **

**Ciao!**


	5. Of COURSE There's A Beach Episode!

**Alright guys, its time for the first bonus chapter!**

**If any of you hadn't read any previous A/N's, these are basically just shorter chapters with no challenge or elimination, and will focus on developing character relationships (general realationships, not romantic relationships). Half of this chapter will be fun, comedy-based stuff and the other half will be a little more strategic, alliance/shippy stuff. Hope you guys like it!**

**Also, Karachi and Obito are being debuted as Camp Counselors! ****In this story, Obito will have no relation to Sasuke and Itachi**_**. **_**He won't share a last name and he'll just be Obito.**

* * *

"Last time, on Total Drama Island! We had a _wicked_ game of dodgeball!" The outdoor court was shown along with a pan of a bunch of red rubber balls. "Konan and Itachi were given breaks from their respective teams due to being too wiped out from kicking butt in the previous challenge," a sleepy Itachi and Konan were shown, "so their gaps had to be filled in! Some filled their shoes better than others," Hinata was shown kicking butt, "while others struggled," Karin got nailed in the face by a dodgeball, "or didn't even _try_," Shikamaru yawned on the bench. "It was a close challenge, but in the end the Foxes edged out their first victory due to Kisame's excellence and some surprised clutch-ness from Naruto!" Naruto caught Temari's ball, and the Foxes were shown celebrating. "It looked like it was the end for resident slacker _Shikamaru_," the Rhinos all glared at Shikamaru, "but a timely freakout from Tayuya scared the rest of her team into voting her off!" A smash cut of Tayuya punching Shikamaru in the face, the rest of her team looking startled, and Tayuya walking the Dock of Shame were shown in quick succession. "Three gone, and it's time to give our campers a break. What fun twists are in store this episode? Find out right here, right now, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

The nineteen campers were sat in the Mess Hall the day after Tayuya's elimination from the Rampaging Rhinos. Fortunately for Konan and Itachi, they had been able to fully recover from their lack of sleep brought on in the Awakeathon challenge.

"Wow," Kurotuschi noted, looking at the Rhino table. "They voted out Tayuya."

"Good," Kisame grunted, "she was tough and an asset in challenges, with her gone it'll be easier to continue to win challenges."

"That's my point, though," the farm girl continued, "it's just strange. She was helpful to them, I'm sure."

"She was also a dick," Karui snorted.

Itachi nodded, "that's probably why they eliminated her. This game is turning out to be mostly about social skills rather than athletic competence."

At this, most of the Foxes subtly glanced at Lee, but he was too busy chowing down on his meal to notice.

"It's good though," TenTen said, pushing her empty plate away from her, "hopefully the absence of one of their tougher players will hinder them, and allow us to win a bunch of challenges."

"Ugh, just imagine," Ino added, "we steamroll them so much that we just win every challenge! That'd be so amazing!"

"I doubt that'll happen," Karui scoffed.

Meanwhile, over at the Rhino table, things were a little quieter. Shikamaru was keeping his head down after the previous night, still sporting his nasty black eye. Kiba was feeding Akamaru scraps of burn bacon from atop his head and Konan was poking at her food half-heartedly. Sakura was chatting away to Sasuke who was looking quite disinterested, and Fu and Karin were chatting amicably. Temari was in deep conversation with Shino, and Deidera was off by himself, muttering as he sculpted something out of his oatmeal.

"So you're telling me you voted for Tayuya?" Shino whispered to Temari, looking a little bewildered. "I thought we were in an alliance with Sasuke and Sakura?"

"We are," Temari told him, "I just thought it would be obvious to vote for Tayuya!"

"I thought it was obvious to vote for Shikamaru," Shino shot back, "he's done nothing for the team. _Nothing_."

"I won't tolerate that sort of behavior from Tayuya…or anyone," Temari snapped, "someone who actively antagonizes the team is worse than someone who does nothing."

Shino sighed, "whatever, it's in the past now. All I'm saying is we should have a meeting next time we lose to discuss who to vote for…_together_."

"I agree," Temari said.

"Though it'll probably be for Shikamaru anyways," he added.

Temari shrugged, "maybe. Hopefully Tayuya smacked some sense into him. I gave him an earful too, last night."

"I saw that," Shino told her, "I'm surprised you even bothered. Isn't it better for us if we have some fodder for the proverbial cannon?"

Temari hunched up her shoulders, a little defensive. "What I do or don't do doesn't really concern you. I have my reasons."

"No need to get testy," Shino chided, "I was just curious."

"Whatever," Temari grumbled, standing up. "Where the hell is Chris anyways? Shouldn't we have our next challenge soon?"

"Excellent question, Temari!" Chris announced, walking into the Mess Hall. "If you'll kindly sit."

Temari sat down, looking expectantly at the host.

"So, I have an announcement for you guys," Chris told them, looking out over them, "I've decided that each team will get a camp counselor!"

"A camp counselor?" Naruto repeated, "what the heck is that?"

"It's someone who kind of watches over you," Hinata told him. "And you can go to if you need something."

"Correctamundo, Hinata," Chris told her, "now, come on in, guys!"

Two young men walked in through the door of the Mess Hall. They both looked to be in their early twenties. One was tall with a shock of dyed platinum grey hair that had so much product in it it seemed to defy gravity. He walked gracefully, if not a little lazily, and had his nose and mouth covered by a mask. He was dressed in a white button up with a couple buttons undone and dark denim jeans with hiking boots.

"This is Kakashi," Chris told the campers, gesturing to the man, "and he'll be the counselor for the Foxes."

"Yo," Kakashi said, waving at the Foxes.

"And this is Obito," Chris gestured to the other young man. "He'll be the counselor for the Rhinos."

Obito was a fun-looking guy with spiky black hair. He had on bright orange goggles and wore a baggy white t-shirt with a black hoodie unzipped over it. He wore torn up jeans and sandals, and looked like a generally fun dude to be around.

"What's up guys?" Obito greeted, looking excited, "I'm ready to have some fun, are you guys?"

"Hell yeah!" Kiba yelled from the Rhino table.

"Whoa! Sick puppy, dude!" Obito said, walking over to the Rhino table and sticking his hand out for Akamru to sniff.

"Thanks, man!"

Kakashi walked over to the Fox table and peered down at them all.

"Why d'you wear a mask?" Naruto asked obnoxiously, craning his neck as if hoping to peer under Kakshi's mask.

"So I don't get diseases from dirty little monkeys like you," Kakashi rolled his eyes, "anyways, I'm Kakashi and all that, blah blah. I have to be some sort of authority figure for you twerps."

"Don't sound so excited," Kisame smirked.

Kakashi pulled a paperback book out from his pocket and opened it with one hand. "I'm not excited to here."

"So why'd you sign up?" Karui asked him incredulously.

Kakashi shrugged, "supposedly the paycheck is pretty decent, and my summer was otherwise pretty open."

Chef barked out a laugh from the kitchen. "Paycheck? Good luck getting that! I haven't gotten my paycheck in months!"

"We've only been here for like a week," Kurotsuchi told him.

"I worked here setting up, fool," Chef scoffed, "now shut up!"

"Anyways, that's not the only announcement I have for you guys," Chris interrupted. "Today's challenge is…nothing!"

"Nothing?" Karin repeated blankly. "There's no challenge today?"

Chris shook his head, "nope! Every three challenges, you guys will have a day off to rest up and prepare yourself for the next grueling set of challenges. So, today is that day! Do whatever you want! Maybe you can partake in some classic summer camp activities!" He began to walk out the door, "and try and make your new counselors feel at home!"

Once the host left, the campers all looked at another, unsure how to proceed.

One camper had an idea.

"ALRIGHT!" Naruto hopped up onto the table, startling most of his teammates. He ignored Kakashi's 'get off, squirt!' And pointed a triumphant out to all the campers. "You know what this means?"

Silence and crickets.

Unfazed, Naruto thumped his hand to his chest, "you know what this means!? _BEACH. PARTAYYY!" _

Ino jumped up quickly and clapped her hands. "Ooh, a beach party! That sounds fun!"

"I too would enjoy a party at the beach," Lee grinned, "I can show off my excellent swimsuit."

"You _will_ be voted off next if you wear that revolting speedo," Karui snapped, shaking her fist menacingly.

"I guess it could be fun," Kisame conceded.

Naruto jumped off the table and bounded over to the Rhino table. "You guys are coming too!"

The Rhinos all looked kinda surprised to be invited, and didn't seem certain on how to respond.

"No way, they're the enemy!" Karui told Naruto.

"Aw, c'mon!" Ino said, "it's a day off! We can all hang out!" She lowered her voice and leaned towards Karui, "besides, we get to see Sasuke in his _swuimsuit_ again!"

Karui seemed to consider this, but some on the Rhinos has objections too. "We have better things to do than hang around with the enemy!" Sasuke told Naruto, nose in the air.

"Aw, it could be fun!" Kiba protested.

Sakura grabbed Sasuke's arm, and the boy rolled his eyes, "C'mon Sasuke, Kiba's right! What else are we gonna do today anyways?"

"She's gotta point, hn." Deidera agreed, "why not?"

"I say we do it!" Fu cheered, "it'll be awesome!"

"Yeah, can't hurt to get a look at the ladies in their swimsuits again," Kiba agreed, slinging an arm around Shino, "eh, Shino?"

Shino rolled his eyes, though no one saw it because of his sunglasses. "I dunno, I'm not really a 'beachy' kinda guy."

"Well, _I'm_ going!" Sakura declared. "If you all wanna be grumps and miss out, that's fine! I'm gonna go get changed into my swimsuit." She stood up and headed out the door.

"Alright, beach party! Let's do it!" Naruto hooted, also getting up and racing to get changed.

"Beach party?" Obito grinned, "alright, sounds awesome, eh Kakashi?"

Karachi rolled his eyes, "about as fun as a fork in the eye. I'll just stay in our cabin and read."

"Have it your way, party pooper!"

Ino, Lee, Karui, Kisame, TenTen, Kurotsuchi, Fu, Deidera and Kiba all left too. Hinata, Itachi, Shikamaru, Temari, Shino, Konan, Karin and Sasuke remained behind, silent.

"Beach parties sound like a drag," Konan grumbled.

"And lame," Sasuke scoffed.

Suddenly, voices were heard outside. Voices of joy, happiness, and excitement. It trickled into the Mess Hall, and the campers were shown starting to struggle as they listened to all the fun the campers going to the beach were having.

"Well…maybe it isn't the worst idea…" Karin mumbled, uncertain.

Temari shifted in her seat, "I mean, what else are we gonna do today anyways?" She offered.

Itachi sighed and stood up, "perhaps I may as well go. I don't want to look back on this experience and wish I had partaken in less fun." He turned to Hinata, "Perhaps you should come as well. It wouldn't do to have you be the only member of the team that doesn't come."

Hinata looked nervous, "it's…it's not like I don't want to go…the thought of it just stresses me out…"

Itachi smiled gently at her, "do not fear, people will be happy to have you with us. You know, you are rather popular with your teammates, in case you haven't noticed."

Hintata flushed, "me? N-no way!"

Itachi chuckled, and offered her his hand. She took it and stood up, and the two began to walk towards the exit. "Besides," the older Uchiha mentioned, "I think a certain _blonde_ will be excited to see you there."

As Hinata made different embarrassed noises, the Rhinos all looked at each other.

"Screw it," Karin said, standing up, "I'm going."

"Me too," Temari said, also standing. "And if some people have a brain," she added with a side-look at Shikamaru, "they'll come too."

Shikmaru gave her a grumpy look, but got the message. "Woohoo," he deadpanned standing up, "can't wait to go get changed into my bathing suit and swim and make sandcastles like a five-year old."

"That's the spirit," Temari told him sarcastically. The three headed out.

That left Shino, Kakashi, Konan and Sasuke the only ones left in the Mess Hall. The happy noises continued to pour in from outside, but the four were looking vastly unaffected. However, footsteps could be rapidly heard approaching the Mess Hall again, and the four looked up as two Rhinos burst in, already clad in their swimsuits.

Kiba and Sakura rushed into the Hall, going over to Konan and Sasuke respectively.

"C'mon, you're coming," Kiba told Konan, sitting down on top of the table next to the goth.

She shook her head, "I don't think so. Parties are not my thing."

Kiba shook his head, "don't think of it like a party. Think of it as going to the beach to hang out with your friends!"

Konan rolled her eyes. "As if any of the people here are my _friends_."

"Oh c'mon," Kiba said, sounding a little hurt. "We're friends, right?"

Konan made a 'so-so' gesture with her hands. "Ehhh…"

"Don't be a jerk," Kiba griped, sliding off the table and grabbing her pale wrist with his hand, "c'mon!"

Akamaru, atop Kiba's head, gave a couple of agreeable yips, and Konan relented. "Ugh, fine, I'll go get changed."

Kiba pumped his fist, "alright, meetcha down there!"

Further down the table, Sasuke and Sakura were having a similar discussion.

"Pleeeease, Sasuke?" Sakura begged, standing over the sitting boy with her hands clasped together. "It'll be so much more fun if you're there!"

"Pfft, I have better things to do than go down to the beach with a bunch of morons and get ogled at," Sasuke scoffed, crossing his arms.

Sakura didn't look to happy by this idea either, but persisted. "I'll smack them if they stare too much! C'mon, what else are you gonna do anyways?" She put a hand on his arm.

Sasuke looked into her big green eyes with a determined stubbornness. "I don't want to," he repeated, "sorry Sakura."

Sakura's eye twitched, and the hand on his arm suddenly tightened. Sasuke looked surprised as Sakura glared down at him. "You're coming!" She growled, tugging the boy out of his seat with surprising strength. Then, suddenly, her sunny personality was back and she smiled brightly at the Uchiha. "C'mon!"

Sasuke, a little too taken aback to properly respond, let himself be dragged out of the Mess Hall.

Kiba and Shino watched them leave, and the dogboy turned to Shino. "C'mon, dude, don't be such a downer."

Shino stood up. "Fine, I'll go get my suit.

Kiba stared at him, surprised. "Huh, I was expecting more of a fight."

"I don't want to be the only camper that doesn't go," Shino told him, heading towards the door, "that'd just be weird."

"Besides," Kiba added, jumping up to follow Shino out. "Lots of babes in their swimsuits!"

"That is nice," Shino agreed. The two began to walk down the dirt path towards their cabin, taking in the nice sunny air and the gentle breeze. Shino shot a sly side-eye at his friend, "But y'know, you can't see piercing outlines through swimsuits."

Kiba gasped in mock offense, "Shino, don't be so dirty!" He chided as the two approached the cabin. His offended expression quickly became a lewd grin. "And besides, I know they aren't," he whispered, "I remembered from the first challenge."

Shino couldn't help himself. He chuckled slightly. "You're a doofus," he told Kiba affecteonality.

"Hey! Am not!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Sasuke.)**

Sasuke is deep in thought, "Jeez, it looks like Sakura has a temper. That's good to know…" he smirks slightly as he stares off into space, but quickly recovers. "Uh…for future alliance maneuvers, of course."

**(End Confessional: Sasuke.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.)**

"I'm pretty sure Kiba has a crush on me," Konan sighs, "sure, he's cute, but he's a little too…rambunctious for my taste. Besides, I didn't come here to get a boyfriend or even make friends."

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

Everyone met up at the beach and began engaging it fun, awesome, amazing beach activities.

"Alright!" Kurotsuchi shouted, "we're playing a game of Marco Polo! Who's in?!"

As it turned out, Kisame, Lee, Naruto, Itachi, Shino, Fu, TenTen, Karin, Sakura and Sasuke were up for it, and they all clambered into the water to begin to play. It was decided that Naruto would be Polo, and he closed his eyes and began calling out "Marco!"

The others who deigned not to play were either sunbathing, chatting, or kicking around a soccer ball on the beach that Kisame had brought with him.

Hinata was sitting on a towel in the sand by herself, smiling as she watched Naruto thrash around in the water hunting for his fellow campers. A shadow crossed over her and she looked up to see Ino standing above her, grinning devilishly.

"I don't think I like that grin," Hinata noted as Ino sat down in the sand next to her.

"Hinata," Ino started in a very business-like tone, "I know you've got a crush on one of the boys here." It wasn't a question.

Hinata looked surprised, but to her credit didn't blush. "W-what makes you say that?" She asked the model, a tad nervous.

Ino wrapped her arms around her knees and gave the girl a sly look. "Call it a girls intuition. I wanna know who."

"Why?"

"So I can hook you two up, of course!" Ino squealed, losing the business tone in an instant and adorning a goofy smile instead.

"Hook us up?!" Hinata exclaimed, blushing. "B-b-ut there's no way he would…I mean that I could…I mean…"

"Aha! So there is someone!" Ino pumped a triumphant fist and then stretched out in the sand, lying on her back. "Tell me!"

A third voice caught the two's attention. "Hey guys! Whatcha talking about?"

The two looked up to see a smiling Sakura approaching them.

"Hinata has a crush on someone," Ino said quickly, making Hinata sigh miserably. "I'm trying to figure out who!" She looked around, "hey, where's Sasuke?"

Sakura looked a little annoyed by the question, but maintained her composure. "Dunno," she said nonchalantly, "why d'you care anyways?"

"You're just always hanging off him, I was surprised to see you alone." Ino said, her tone of voice making it quite clear that Sakura had failed to hide her annoyance.

Sakura scowled, but quickly shook it off. "Whatever! Hinata, who's the boy you like?!" She took a seat on the other side of Hinata, and both her and Ino leaned into the shy girls face.

"I…I can't say it. It's too embarrassing for me," Hinata mumbled, covering her face.

"Is it one of the Uchiha's? They're both babes," Ino suggested. Hinata shook her head no, hands still covering her face.

"Good," Sakura said, "uh, I mean…good! That narrows it down for us! Haha, err, maybe Kisame? He's got that kind of badass bad boy vibe going." Hinata shook her head again.

The girls began to take turns guessing.

"Goofy Kiba?"

"Mysterious Shino?"

"Artsy Deidera?"

Hinata shook her head at all of these, and the girls were beginning to get stumped.

Ino let out a mortified gasp. "Don't tell me…don't tell me it's Lee?!"

Hinata actually let out a little laugh at that. "Oh goodness, no." The girl responded quickly. "Just…no."

The three girls shared a laugh.

"Well that leaves Shikamaru and Naruto." Ino said with a sly grin. "Foolish girl, you've backed yourself into a corner here!"

Hinata was silent for a few seconds before she finally let out a little sigh. "Okay, fine, I'll tell you girls."

Sakura and Ino leaned in, excited.

"It's…he…I…I just think Naruto is kinda cute," Hinata finally said.

Both girls smacked their hands to their foreheads. "Naruto?" Ino repeated, "man, you have weird taste in guys Hinata, no offense."

"It's not like I'm head over heels with him or anything," Hinata said quickly, waving her hands back and forth, "I just think he's cute. I like his optimism and his enthusiasm."

Sakura glomped Hinata in a tight hug and squealed. "Oh this is so exciting! We have to get them together!"

Ino nodded her head in agreement. "I've already come up with a plan, we just have to make sure you both are around long enough for it to be set in motion…" she shakes her head, "guess that means we gotta keep Naruto around for a little bit longer as long as he doesn't screw up too bad." The blonde turned to look at Sakura, "And you, keep this hush hush! I know we're on opposite teams…but…"

"Oh please," Sakura said dismissively, "this is _way_ more important than some stupid game! We're talking about possible love here!"

"I'm glad we're on the same page, then," Ino said happily. "Alright, Sakura I'll fill you in on the plan later," she hopped to her feet and headed towards the water, "but for now, let's enjoy this beach party!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Hinata.)**

Hinata has her hands clasped to her cheeks and she looks slightly nervous, "Uh-oh…what mess did I just get myself into?"

**(End Confessional: Hinata.)**

* * *

Shikamaru was off sitting by himself, dozing in the warm sun as he lay on his towel. He was perfectly fine sitting by himself and enjoying his sleepy solitude. However, this didn't stop a certain person from walking up to him and plopping down into the sand next to him. Shikamaru opened an eye and took a look at the person who sat next to him. "What do you want?"

Temari glanced down at him with a raised eyebrow. "I'm wondering if you gave any serious thought to what we talked about last night."

"Finally calmed down enough to have a civil conversation, have you?" Shikamaru scoffed.

"I was calm," Temari told him, "but you needed a kick in the pants. I'm just here to see if you need another."

Shikamaru shook his head and returned back to his original position. He closed his eyes and yawned loudly. "Nope, I don't. I'll be a nice little team player until you guys inevitably vote me out anyways."

"Why do you think you'll be voted out even if you try?" Temari asked him curiously.

"Life experience has taught me the results of putting in effort is rarely worth it," Shikamaru told her, eyes still closed.

"You're sixteen," Temari deadpanned, "we're all just a bunch of _kids_. How can you be so apathetic?"

"Call it cynicism."

"More like teenage angst."

Shikamaru opened an eye to glare at Temari. "Look, if you just came over here to insult me, can you piss off? I was actually starting to enjoy myself before you came over here."

Temari just smirked and stood up. She dusted off her hands and turned around, walking away without another word.

Shikamaru watched her leave, trying and failing to keep his eyes solely above the dimples in her back. "Troublesome woman," he grumbled, thumping back down in the sand.

* * *

The sun had started to set, and everyone had clambered out of the water. Itachi and Karin and started up a bonfire in the sand and everyone was sitting around it, enjoying the darkening sky and the warmth of the fire.

"This is nice," Fu said happily, warming her hands in front of the fire.

Kisame was noticeably further away from the fire than anyone else, and Itachi noticed. "What's the matter, Kisame? Is the fire too warm?"

"It's fine," Kisame told him, "I've just never been a fan of fire."

Sasuke harrumphed and threw another twig into the fire. "Fire is great, why are you scared of it?"

"It destroys indiscriminately and absolutely. Anything with that kind of power and malice should be viewed with caution," Kisame told the other teen.

Sasuke took a stick that was half in, half out of the fire and held it up. It burned brightly. "Yeah, but you can harness that power, it's awesome." A handful of the girls swooned at seeing Sasuke holding the torch, but he paid them no mind.

"It's all good, man," Deidera said to Kisame, "everyone's afraid of something!"

"Oh?" Fu looked interested, "whats your worst fear?"

Deidera held up his hands and wiggled them, "losing my hands. Not being able to do art would be horrible for me."

"For me, it's being buried alive," Kurotusuchi said calmly.

* * *

**(Confessional: Karin.) **

"And just like that, everyone started a share-session about their worst fears!" Karin exclaims, "TenTen hates wasps, Naruto doesn't like horror movie villains, and Ino went on and on about how she'd totally die if she got a terrible haircut."

**(End Confessional: Karin.)**

* * *

"Me? Probably being stuck in a panicking crowd," Temari confessed, "a bunch of frenzied idiots?" She shuddered, "no thanks."

"I've always hated big lizards," Kiba said, mindlessly petting Akamaru. "They totally freak me out."

"Seeing those I love in danger," Itachi said somberly.

"Ballerinas, I dunno why," Konan said gloomily, "maybe it's the tutus."

"Blood freaks me out," Shino sighed, "any kind, really, as long as there's a lot of it."

Hinata poked her fingers together, "I've never liked tornadoes. They're so destructive and unpredictable…"

More of the campers went around confessing. Fu hated centipedes, Karui spiders, Sakura heights, and Karin aliens.

"Aliens?" Naruto scoffed, "there's no such thing!"

"No such things?" Karin repeated incredulously, "if you look at the sheer size of our universe and think that we're alone in it…well you're a dolt."

"Hey, don't call me a dolt," Naruto said, annoyed, "I dunno what it means!"

"What about you, Sasuke?" Ino asked, turning to one of the three campers that had yet to reveal a fear.

Sasuke looked a little embarrassed, "well, I've always found clowns to be just…not right."

"You got that right." Kisame agreed, "clowns are a close fear behind fire for me, those things aren't normal."

TenTen stifled a giggle, "you do know they're just people in costumes, right?"

"That's what the clowns want you to think," Kisame said in a paranoid tone. From across the fire, Sasuke nodded his head fervently in agreement.

"I guess I'm scared of flying," Shikamaru shrugged, "never been on a plane and I sure as hell don't want to."

Heads turned to Lee, the last one to admit his fear. Surprisingly, the boy was looking very uncomfortable.

"How about you, Lee?" TenTen said, "what're you scared of?"

"I'd…I'd rather not say," Lee gulped, fidgeting with his green speedo.

Karui cracked her knuckles, "no way we all just said a fear and you aren't going to. Spit it out."

Lee relented. "Fine," he said slowly, "...but you must not laugh!"

"I make no such promises," Kiba said with an obnoxious smirk.

"My fear is…old people."

Silence.

"Ol…old people?" Temari repeated, genuinely confused. "Like, _all_ old people?"

Kurotsuchi scratched her chin, "isn't that ageist?"

"I can't help it!" Lee wailed, starting those sitting closest to him, "They're just wrinkly, and they smell weird, and I don't like them!"

Kisame finally stopped laughing. "You continue to amaze me, Bowl Cut," he finally choked out.

Many of the other began to laugh too. Lee thought they were laughing at him at first, but soon realized it was more they were laughing _with_ him. Eventually he relaxed a little and even let loose a couple chuckles of his own.

After the laughter had died down, Shino adjusted his sunglasses that he was still wearing even though it was dark out. "It's interesting to think about that, once our next rest day arrives, three of us will be gone." His sunglasses glinted as he turned his heads to look at the shadowy faces of his eighteen competitors, which had all turned serious at his words. "I wonder who'll leave us by then?"

A more serious silence settled over them, broken only went TenTen clapped her hands together once. "I love me some competition!" She grinned, "I'm fired up!"

Laughter broke out at that, and the teens continued to chat amicably with one another.

None were so stupid, however, as to forget what Shino said. This respite was only temporary, and the next day one of them would leave the island for good.

One by one, they would lose.

And all knew it couldn't be them.

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Fu, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya.**_

* * *

**Like I said, shorter, fluffier chapters that expand upon characters relationships with one another. It's also setting up for something else, but you won't know what until the sixth challenge...muahaha.**

**Also, I know Kakashi and Obito weren't featured a ton here, but we'll see them on and off throughout the story. Mostly just for comic relief, though! **

**\- Will Shikamaru finally get his act together?**

**\- If you had to bet, which three campers won't make it to the next Rest Day?**

**\- Will Ino and Sakura's plan of hooking Hinata up with Naruto succeed? Or, is it destined to fail miserably? **

**Catch you guys next time. Ciao! **


	6. Not Quite Famous!

**Alright, time for another ninja to bite the dust. **

**Quick question though. I've toyed with the idea of Chris and Chef leaving for some business and leaving Obito and Kakashi as host and co-host. Would you guys like that, or do you prefer them to be counselors? If they moved up to the host position, they'd get more screen time, but not any personal interactions with the campers, just host-to-contestant duties. IF they stay counselors we won't see them as much, but when we do it'll be more personal. Let me know what you want.**

* * *

"Last time on Total Drama Island! Our campers had their first rest day to relax without a challenge nor fear of elimination." The campers were shown looking interested as Chris announced the no-challenge. "So naturally, the teens decided they should hang out at the beach! Konan, Shino, and Sasuke were being crabby-britches about it," the three aforementioned teens were shown looking surly and uninterested, "but were coaxed into the fun by Kiba and Sakura. So, everyone hit the sand, sun and surf!" The teens played in the water and relaxed on the beach. "While there, Sakura and Ino made a pact to get Hinata together with her crush Naruto," Hinata blushed as Ino and Sakura exchanged determined smirks, "and Temari continued to work Shikamaru to get his butt in gear. Too bad he couldn't keep his eyes off _her_ butt!" A disgruntled Shikamaru stared at Temari as she left. "It's time to get back into the competition, and another camper to leave Total Drama Island for good. Who's it gonna be? Find out right now, on Total! Drama! Island!

* * *

"Yet another youthful day!" Lee hooted, springing out of bed. He began to narrate as he walked over to his dresser to get dressed, "Our rest day is over, and it is time for another strong player to leave this place!"

"Will you just shut up?" Kisame grumbled from under his covers. "We haven't even been woken up by Chris yet, why are you even awake?"

"My youthful body clock knows when our lovely host will decide to wake us," Lee said, grinning brilliantly at the covered jock, "and according to my youthful senses, it'll be just…about…now!"

As if on cue, the door was flung open and Obito jumped into the room, beaming. "Up and at 'em, Fox fellas!" He told them, "It's time for this team to kick some butt!"

"Oh great," Kisame griped, "we have _counselors_, I forgot."

Obito walked over to Naruto, who was still fast asleep, and poked the blond in the face repeatedly. "That's right, Kisame," Obito told him, "I"m your counselor, so what I say _goes_."

"Err, actually, you don't really have any authority over us," Itachi pointed out, "I don't recall Chris mentioning anything like that."

Obito spluttered, continuing to poke Naruto's face. "What?! That's absurd! I'm the boss here, bucko, so you better get in line!"

"Oi!" An awake and cranky Naruto slapped Obito's finger out of his face, "I'm up already, jeez!"

Obito stuck a thumb out at the boys, "get ready to eat some breakfast and prepare yourself for today's challenge!"

Lee shot a thumbs up right back, "understood!"

With that said, Obito bounded out of the cabin and towards the girls side. The camera followed him as he walked the short distance to the girls side. This time, however, he opted to knock politely on the door.

Obito turned his head to look at the camera. "Can't walk in on any naked girls changing now, can I?" He turned his attention back towards the door and called in, "girls! It's time to get up, breakfast is soon!"

The door opened, making Obito step back in surprise. Kurotsuchi stood there, fully dressed. "Morning, Obito," she greeted.

"Are all you girls awake?" Obito asked curiously.

"Yeah!" Ino called from inside, "you can come in!"

Obito walked into the cabin, noting how much cleaner and nicer smelling it was than the boys side. "So punctual!" The older boy noted happily, "I'm glad you're all up and ready to go!"

TenTen grinned at him, "Don't give us too much credit. We heard all the ruckus Lee was making and we've learned to get up once we hear him. The guy has a pretty accurate body clock."

Obito grinned back, adjusting his goggles, "Still. Glad to know you have the drive to actually get up!" He turned to leave, waving over his shoulder, "I'll see you guys at the Mess Hall."

* * *

**(Confessional: Obito.)**

Obito looks around the Confessional in excitement, "Man, this place is so COOL! And I get to stay here for the whole summer without any fear of actually being voted off? That's amazing!" He takes a couple deep breaths to calm himself and looks at the camera, "anyways, my team seems to be okay. We have a lot of strong players, but I suspect they aren't the best team players. If they get on a losing streak, it could get ugly."

**(End Confessional: Obito.)**

* * *

Kakashi sighed as he walked up to the cabin. He was NOT looking forward to going in and waking up his snot-nosed 'campers'. Pfft. What an idiotic thing to call them. This whole thing was such a joke. The handsome man sighed, heating up the inside of his face mask as he did so. He slammed his palm on the door to the boy's side, taking secret pleasure in the startled yelps they emitted.

"Yo. Up and at 'em," he called inside, a touch of warning in his normally emotionless voice, "don't make me come in there."

"We're up, we're up!" He heard Kiba call from inside, though the boy did not sound very awake at all.

"I"m not," He heard Shikamaru mutter. Kakashi could just picture the obnoxious slacker pulling the blankets up over his head, turning his back on the door and noise.

"Shikamaru," Kakashi said, still through the door, "I will come in there, drag you out of your bed, and then use you as a battering ram to open the girls side. How kindly do you think they'll take to seeing a half-naked man in their cabin while they're all in their pajamas and changing?" He let his question hang in the air.

The door slammed open. Kakashi, who had been standing right in front of it, nimbly dodged to the side to avoid getting hit by it. A stony-faced Shikamaru stood there, his hair messed up in his normal spiky ponytail and his clothes only half on. "You've made your point," He drawled at Kakashi, stepping past the counselor and beginning to move to the Mess Hall."

"Nice methods," Shino complemented as he exited after Shikamaru. "It usually takes us at least 10 minutes to get him out of bed. I'll be sure to use that later on."

Kakashi smirked behind his mask. "Why thank you, I do my best."

By the time all the boys had exited, the girls had started to leave their cabin too.

"Morning, Kakashi!" Sakura said brightly as she passed.

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Yo."

"Hey Kakashi," Temari greeted.

"Yo." Another eye roll.

Karin was next. "Morning,"

"Yo."

Then Fu. "Good morning, Kakashi!"

"Yo."

Konan was last to exit, and she stared sullenly at Kakashi. Without saying anything, she walked past him towards the Mess Hall.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kakashi.)**

"I think I like Konan the best on my team," Kakashi says thoughtfully. "She doesn't open her fat mouth to whine or be obnoxious."

**(End Confessional: Kakashi.)**

* * *

"Good morning, campers!" Chris said obnoxiously, entering the Mess Hall. The nineteen teens looked up from their breakfasts, ready to hear what the next challenge would be.

"I hope you are all ready to show us what you're made up, because it's time for a summer camp _classic_!" Chris told them, "tonight, we will be hosting the first annual Wawanakwa Talent Show!"

"Ooh, yay!" Fu said brightly, "I _love_ talent shows."

Sasuke crossed his arms, "uh, _annual_? As in every year? Think again, Mclean."

Chris rolled his eyes. "Don't get your panties in a bunch, Sasuke. You won't have to come back." He winked at the camera. "Now, here's how it works. You guys will have until 6pm to figure out which of you guys is going to perform at the talent show. Each team will be performing three acts, and each act _must_be done by one person, and one person alone."

TenTen raised her hand, "Can we use volunteers?"

"If I deem it necessary, then yes." Chris told her. "Now, get a-choosin!" He turned to leave, "oh, and you can't do anything that might put me or any of the other campers in danger. Other than that, anything goes…as long as it's legal." He left.

"Ooh, you guys have to pick me for the talent contest," Fu told the Rhinos excitedly, "I've done this routine a million times!"

"Well, I for one think we should have auditions," Temari told her, "I don't know if I want to risk a wild card act that we don't _know_ is good."

"I agree," Shino said quickly.

Fu was undeterred, "fine by me, I'll audition!" She looked around the Mess Hall. "Where do we want to do them, though?"

"Outside should be fine," Sasuke put in, "I don't think I have anything that would be super useful in a talent show, though."

"That's fine," Sakura told him, "between all of us we should have at least three decent acts among us."

* * *

**(Confessional: Fu.)**

Fu smiles confidently at the camera, "Finally, I can really contribute something to the team!"

**(End Confessional: Fu.)**

* * *

The Foxes were chilling outside the Mess Hall. They had dragged a couple of picnic tables out to sit on and were all waiting around. They had decided to follow the Rhino's lead and host auditions as well.

Obito appeared, an excited smile on his face and a clipboard in his hands. "Alright, guys! I've got a little checklist here for all you guys. Before we start, does anyone feel they don't have anything to add to the talent show?"

Hinata instantly raised her hand, "there's no way I'd have the nerve to perform in front of everyone," the pretty moe admitted, "sorry guys."

"No worries," Naruto told her happily, "I've got a great talent anyways! I can't wait to audition!"

Obito crossed Hinata's name off his list, "okay. Anyone else?"

Kurotsuchi, Kisame and Itachi raised their hands.

Obito crossed their names off too. "Okay, who wants to go first?"

Naruto swaggered up to the front of the group. He brandished a fairly large bottle of soda. "Alright, guys, prepared to be awed by my awesome talent!" He cracked the top of the bottle and brought it to his lips. He began to chug it, and within seconds it was empty.

"That's your talent?" Ino asked skeptically, "I dunno if that will be-" she was interrupted by Naruto, who held up a finger. The blond pounded his chest and suddenly let out a small belch. After another second, he began to belt out the alphabet.

"Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz!"

The whole team was silent for a moment as they absorbed what they had just observed. Kurotsuchi was the first to break the silence.

"That…was…awesome!" The farm girl cheered, "that some seriously cool stuff!"

Ino was not so impressed, "ugh, more like seriously _gross_."

"It might be gross," TenTen agreed, "but that takes some skill. We'll keep it in consideration."

Naruto seemed to be satisfied, and Obito scribbled a 'maybe' next to the boys name.

TenTen was up next. "I'll be doing an advanced karate kata I've memorized," she explained to the group. She took up a traditional martial arts stance. The rest of the team watched expectantly, curious as to what she would do.

The black belt began with a series of punches and blocks, and it evolved into complicated kicks and feet maneuvers. She looked quite graceful while she was doing it, and when she ended her team applauded warmly.

"Well done, TenTen," Obito told her as she beamed, "It'll be tough to be that!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.)**

"I thought watching someone kick and punch the air would be dorky as hell," Kisame admits, "but watching TenTen do it," he grins a little lewdly, "it was rather…_mesmerizing_."

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

"Okay, so TenTen is a _probably_ and Naruto is a maybe," Obito recounted, "who's up next?"

"I can do some poses," Ino offered, "the art of seduction is part of learning to be a model," she put on a smoldering look as she gazed at her teammates, making most of the guys go red in the face, "might be helpful, no?"

"Absolutely," Lee agreed instantly.

"Doesn't seem like a bad idea," Kisame said.

"Durrr," Naruto drooled. TenTen smacked the back of his head.

"I dunno," Karui told Ino, "I get the whole art of seduction thing, but how impressed do you think the judges will be if you just walk out on stage and pose. Its not like they can get you a paparazzi. We're already all on camera."

Ino pondered that. Part of her still really wanted to do it, but the smarter part knew that this was a dangerous challenge to screw up on since only three from each team were participating and thus, could be held accountable for the loss.

"Alright, fine Karui," Ino relented, "I'll sit this one out."

Karui looked a little surprised by how well Ino took the rejection, but said nothing. The hothead walked up to Obito. "I can sing hip hop pretty well. Nothing amazing, but I've been told I'm good."

"Give us a taste, then," Obito said happily.

Karui cleared her throat and began to sing an easily recognizable top 40 hip hop song. Her description of herself had been accurate. Her voice was nice to listen to but nothing incredibly awe-inspiring or unique.

"Definitely a maybe," Kisame offered, "not bad, Karui."

Karui shrugged and waited for the last person to audition.

Lee leapt up and flashed his comrades a thumbs up. "I will be performing a celebration of youth!"

Ino raised an eyebrow, "what is a celebration of youth dare I ask?"

"It is wonderful," Lee assured her, "but first I must change into my speedo. I can't hip thrust as well without it."

Noises of protest erupted from the rest of the team.

"No way you are doing that!" Karui gagged.

"If what I'm picturing is somewhat accurate, I can not see you scoring well," Itachi told Lee.

As the comments and disapproval continued to rain in, Lee's exuberant smile began to droop.

"Well, that means Naruto, TenTen and Karui will be our three," Obito said once the clamor had died down. "We've got time before the actual talent contest, so if any of you three need to practice, get going!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Lee.)**

Lee wears a scowl for the first time all season. "I'm growing tired of having my entire team be against me so much! I have done nothing to wrong them, I am only being myself! Why must everyone be so negative?"

**(End Confessional: Lee.)**

* * *

Temari clapped her hands, "alright team, let's get this audition process started." The pretty team leader held a clipboard in her hands similar to the one Obito had, and was scanning the list of names. "Okay, first off, should we-" The clipboard was suddenly yanked out of her hands. Frowning, she turned to the culprit. "Um, that was rude, Kakashi."

Kakashi didn't even spare Temari a second glance, instead choosing to focus on the clipboard. "Hmm, okay. I'll be overseeing this audition process."

"Why? You hate us all," Kiba pointed out.

"Not all, just most," Kakashi corrected, "now, does anyone _not_ want to audition for anything? We've only got three spots, so if we can narrow it down that is good."

"Not me," Shino offered.

"My talents are really suited for the stage," Karin admitted.

"Same," Sasuke agreed.

"No way," Konan deadpanned.

"I'll sit out too," Temari offered. "I don't have much either."

"Okay," Kakashi said, crossing off some names. "That leaves Fu, Shikamaru, Sakura, Deidera and Kiba for auditioning."

Sasuke looked over at Shikamaru, a little surprised. "What are you auditioning for?"

Shikamaru smirked, "Surprised? I can't say I blame you. I'm auditioning, I just need to go grab what I'll be using for my cabin." He stuck his hands in his pockets and began to walk off towards the cabin. "Be right back," he called over his shoulder.

"I'll audition first!" Fu suggested, clearly very excited. She was bouncing on the balls of her feet, and had already ran to get her pom poms she had brought to the island.

"Alright, the stage is yours!" Temari said warmly.

Fu instantly began pacing back and forth, waving her pom poms excitedly. Her bubbly personality seemed to amplify as she began to hype her team up. "Alright guys," Fu said excitedly, waving her pom poms, "give me an R!"

"R!" Cheered most of the team excitedly,

"Give me an H! Gimme an I! Give me an N! Give me an O! Give me an S! What does that spell?" She began a complicated, impressive series of backflips and cartwheels.

"RHINOS!" Roared everyone minus Konan, even the more stoic characters like Sasuke and Shino getting swept up in the moment.

"Go Rhinos!" Fu finished, ending a backflip by sliding on her knees.

The Rhinos erupted into applause, and even Kakashi looked somewhat impressed.

"That was awesome!" Temari complimented.

"It really was!" Sakura squealed.

Fu was beaming and breathless. "Thank you guys, thanks!"

"Alright, let's move it along," Kakashi chided, "who's next?"

"I'll go," Sakura offered, "I'll be reciting some poetry!"

The rest of the team watched her expectantly as Sakura cleared her throat. Things got a little awkward thought when she openly stared at Sasuke as she began to recite.

"_My care for you is like the raging sea,_

_So powerful and deep it will forever be._

_Through storm, wind and heavy rain,_

_It will withstand every pain." _

She stopped, smiling.

"Did you make that yourself?" Kiba finally broke the awkward silence.

"I did," Sakura beamed, "I just came up with a couple days ago."

Sasuke was looking particularly awkward, and Kakashi was doing his best not to laugh. "Well," the counselor said, "it's definitely a consideration. Let's move on."

Sakura was no fool, and could see the reaction her poem had caused. Highly embarrassed, she shuffled to the back of the group as Deidera got ready to audition.

"I will be creating a wonderful piece of art!" The artist announced, digging out some wads of clay from his pockets and brushing his long blonde hair out of his eyes. He happily began to work on it as the rest watched expectantly. They watched…and watched…and watched…

"Oi, Deidera, hurry up." Kakashi deadpanned, "we haven't got all day."

Deidera shot Kakashi a nasty glare, "I'm almost finished, hn! Shut up!" And got back to working the clay. When he finished, he had a rough clay sculpture of Chris's face.

"Not bad, but I think it might take a little too long. We don't want the judges to get bored," Temari told Deidera kindly. At the artists upset look, she quickly added, "it's not a no, we just need to see what else is left."

Kiba stepped up triumphantly, "alright, time to rock this talent contest!" He picked up Akamaru off the top of his head and set the puppy on the ground. "Alright Akamaru, you know what to do!"

Akamaru gave an adorable little yip. Without saying a word, Kiba began making different gestures, prompting Akamaru to do different tricks. When Kiba raised his hand, Akamaru sat. When he snapped his fingers, Akamaru barked. When Kiba bared his teeth, Akamaru did too. The whole thing was very adorable and impressive.

"That was awesome, Kiba!" Karin complemented.

"Totally awesome!" Fu agreed.

Kiba gave a slightly arrogant grin as he picked up Akamaru and pet his little head. "Yeah, we rock."

"I think Kiba should definitely be in," Kakashi said, circling the boys name. "Looks like Shikamaru is last."

The team was, overall, fairly skeptical on what Shikamaru would do. They were even more surprised when he pulled out the two items he would be using for his talent: A blindfold, and a Rubix Cube.

"Here," he tossed the Rubix Cube to Temari. "Mess that up real good."

Temari looked a little confused, but complied. She twisted the cube up for a good twenty seconds before tossing it back to Shikamaru. The slacker caught the cube and examined it thoroughly. Once he was satisfied, he took the blindfold and put it over himself. "Okay," he explained, "now I'm going to solve this just from the one look I took at it. I've memorized the eighty-four steps needed to complete the cube."

"And how long is this gonna take?" Konan asked skeptically.

"Shouldn't be longer than a minute," Shikamaru told her stoically. With his words done, he hands began to move. They quickly shifted and moved the Cube around, and his teammates couldn't help but feel a little mesmerized by his swift movements.

"10," the slacker began to count off, each turn remaining, "9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and…done," he gave the cube a final turn and, sure enough, it was completed. He took the blindfold off and examined the completed cube. He shot his team a rare grin. "Not bad, huh?"

"Not bad at all," Karin agreed, "very impressive, Shikamaru. Do you have a photographic memory?"

The spiky-haired teen nodded his head.

"Wow, so we have some pretty good acts to choose from," Kakashi said, sounding a little shocked. "Guess you twerps aren't total losers."

"Let's get opinions from those of us that didn't audition, cause we're pretty unbiased." Shino offered. "Personally, I think animals can sucker judges into giving higher scores, and I think Shikamaru has that 'wow' factor."

"I agree," Temari said approvingly, "I think we can say with certainty that those two slots are filled."

"Alright!" Kiba pumped his fist, "let's get it!"

"So that leaves Deidera and Fu, right?" Sasuke asked. He looked between the two, "do either of you wish to back out?"

Deidera and Fu both looked pretty stubborn, but eventually one gave in.

"Fine," Deiedera looked like it physically hurt him to say the words, "if there is even any doubt that her cheerleading surpasses my art, then I say she gets her chance to prove herself. You can do it, Fu."

"Aw, thanks Deidera," Fu told him warmly, "your art is amazing! I just think its more of a time-sensitive thing."

"Ok, we've got the acts. We're done here." Kakashi said.

* * *

**(Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

"Looks like I lucked out a little," Shikamaru tells the camera, "I got to do something I already knew how to do to contribute to my team. As long as I score well in the talent show, the target on my back should hopefully be a little smaller."

**(End Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

* * *

Later that night, the spectators from both teams met at the amphitheater, a large wooden structure located near the dodgeball. It looked just like a standard, slightly crappy high-school auditorium, except it was outdoors.

Chris walked out onto the raised stage, wearing a sky-blue tuxedo. "Welcome to the first annual Wawanakwa Talent Show! Tonight, we'll have three acts from each team perform for DJ, VJ, and licensed party animal Chef Hatchet! Their cats will be scored out of 10 on the "Chef-O-Meter!" A large, holographic spatula appeared on the screen and lit up, showing 10 sections that could be lit up depending on the score. "Now, the Rhinos get us started with…Kiba!"

Polite applause rang out from the thirteen teens seated in the stands as Kiba strode out onto the stage with Akamaru. Kiba bowed to the audience, and Akamaru followed suit. Kiba proceeded to have Akamaru sit, spin and stand on his hind legs, all without using any verbal commands. Akamaru was a adorable and Kiba managed to be personable without opening his mouth.

"Well done, Kiba," Chris complimented once he had finished the act. The other campers applauded as well. "Let's see what Chef thinks of that!" The Chef-O-Meter appeared onscreen and filled seven of the bars. "A seven! Not too shabby. Naruto is up next for the Foxes."

Kiba walked off the stage, grinning proudly, and rejoined his Rhino teammates on the bleachers.

Backstage, the five campers yet to perform were lounging on crappy sofas.

"Alright Naruto, kill it out there," Karui told him, though her encouragement sounding more like a warning. "Get better than seven!"

Naruto gave her a thumbs up, "Believe it! I'm gonna get a 10!" He twirled his other hand that held the 2-liter bottle of soda and headed confidently out onto the stage.

Kisame, Kurotsuchi, Lee, Hinata, Ino and Itachi all applauded with varying degrees of enthusiasm as the blonde gonzo made his entrance. "Alright, ladies and gents," Naruto said with a smirk, "today I will be performing a very daunting, difficult task!" He showed the audience his bottle of soda. "I will be chugging this, and then…" he gave a dark chuckle, "well, you'll see what happens after that…" With his bit said, he uncapped the soda and threw his head back, expertly chugging the soda. Once he was done, he cleared his throat and pounded his chest a couple times. "Here it comes," he grunted…"ABCDEFGHIJKLMOPQRSTUVWXYZ!" Rapid fire, the alphabet was hurled out of his mouth. He finished with a bow.

Most of the dudes and some of the girls clapped at this, impressed.

Chris returned to the stage, "not bad, Naruto! Let's see what Chef thinks!" The Chef-O-Meter showed a 6. "Not too shabby! Not quite enough to snag the lead from the Rhinos, but the difference is only one point!"

Backstage, Fu, Shikamaru, TenTen and Karui were lounging still.

"I can't believe we don't get to hear the scores," Karui rolled her eyes, "like, what could we possibly do with that information?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "beats me," he looked around, "which one of us is going next?"

"Me!" Fu said, looking super excited, "My cheer is gonna knock their socks off!"

Shikamaru gave her a thumbs up, "knock 'em dead."

"Break a leg," Karui mocked.

Fu stuck her tongue out at Karui and grabbed her pompoms, making her way out onto the stage. "Hey everyone!" She greeted warmly, "I hope you're ready for the best cheer ever! Give me a W!"

The audience responded enthusiastically. "W!"

Fu proceeded to do a cartwheel, "give me an A!", now a front flip, "another W!" Then, disaster struck. As Fu proceeded to do a backflip, her left leg seemed to give out from under her and she slipped, falling onto the floor and wiping out in the process. Everyone gasped and Sakura and Deidera hurried on stage to check if the girl was ok.

"Ohmygosh, Fu! Are you okay?!" Sakura asked, looking panicked.

It seemed, however, that the only thing that was hurt was Fu's pride. "I'm fine," she said embarrassedly, "it's my stupid old cheerleading injury. Sometimes my left leg is a little wonky and spasms, and one happened there…ugh! What horrible timing!" She accepted Sakura's hand and rose to her feet, "I'm unhurt, though, so I guess that's good."

"While I am glad you're unhurt," Chris told Fu as he returned to the stage, "Chef was not too impressed by your wipe out!" The bar only filled one slot. "Yikes, that brings the Rhinos total score up to eight points! The Foxes have 6, but an extra act up!"

"Oh no," Fu moaned, "we're totally screwed!"

"Not necessarily, hn!" Deidera told her as the three returned to the bleachers, "the other team could have a mess up too!"

"I guess…"

* * *

**(Confessional: Shino.)**

"Truly a shame what happened with Fu," Shino admits, "but at the very least, we now have a scapegoat if we are unable to pull out the victory." His sunglasses glint somehow, despite the fact that' he's in an enclosed outhouse, "this game is vicious."

**(End Confessional: Shino.)**

* * *

"Karui, you're up," Obito told her.

"Really? That was fast," Karui was surprised.

"Yeah, that's probably not good," Shikamaru muttered to himself, knowing full well what Fu's talent was and how long it should've taken her to do it.

Karui went onstage and began singing a classic pop song. Like her audition, her voice was not amazing, but she had charisma as a performer and some decent dance moves, and soon had several people in the audience nodding along to the beat.

"Pretty good, Karui," Chris told her as the Chef-O-Meter flashed another six. "Up to twelve now, the Foxes have a decent lead on the Rhino's 8. Shikamaru is the last person to go up for them, so he needs to get at _least_ a 4, otherwise TenTen won't even need to perform."

Shikamaru walked out on stage holding his blindfold and Rubix Cube. "Here," he told Chris, tossing him the cube, "mix that up real good."

Chris nodded and mixed the cube up, just like Temari had done earlier that game. Shikamaru repeated his actions from that event by getting the cube back, looking at it, then putting the blindfold on.

"Alright," Shikamaru said dryly, "I'm gonna solve this blindfolded now that I've got a good look at it. Save your gasps, people." His hands began to solve it, and within thirty seconds he was done, and the cube was perfectly completed. He took his blindfold off and gave it a twirl. "Ta-da."

"Impressive indeed!" Chris complimented, "and Chef seems to think so too as he gives it a score of 9! That brings the Rhino's final score to 17. Shikamaru has given them a lifeline, as the Foxes now need a score of 6 to win. Decent odds, as long as TenTen doesn't mess it up!"

TenTen entered the stage, a confident smirk on her face as she adjusted her buns. She had changed out of her normal clothes into a traditional karate gi. She bowed to the audience, not saying a word, and took up a fighting stance. She began her kata, moving with exceptional grace and power. Her strikes were punctuated by the sound of her heavy gi snapping. From punching to kicking to spinning and a combination of the three, it was safe to say it was very impressive.

She finally finished after ac couple of minutes, and bowed once more to the audience. Cheers filled the air and TenTen smiled modestly, a little out of breath.

"Well, that was pretty kick-butt," Chris admitted, "let's see if Chef agrees." The Chef-O-Meter flashed a whopping 9. "Wow! With the highest score of the night, TenTen takes it for the Foxes with a final score of 21-17! Rhinos, I'll be seeing you at the elimination ceremony!"

The Foxes erupted into cheers and swarmed TenTen. Kisame scooped her up and placed her on his shoulders as they all left the outdoor auditorium, still cheering.

A saddened Fu stared forlornly at the ground.

* * *

The shot cut to the elimination area, where the ten Rhinos were sitting on the stumps. The fire flickered merrily and cast dancing shadows on the ground. Crickets chirped and the night was cloudy.

"Rhinos," Chris said solemnly, "it is time to send one of you packing. Now, if I call your name, you are safe and get to live to fight another day for the $100,000. If I do _not _end up calling your name, you will be forced to walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and leave the island forever." He picked up the first of nine marshmallows. "The first marshmallow goes to Shikamaru, likely for his excellent performance in the talent show."

Shikamaru looked a little surprised, but gratefully caught his marshamllow. Temari gave him an approving glance from his left.

"Kiba and Temari, you two are also safe."

Dogboy and Class President also happily accepted their marshmallows.

Chris turned to the seven. "Konan, Sasuke and Shino, you three didn't do much this challenge, but it doesn't matter this time. You are safe."

That left four campers and three marshmallows. "One of you four will be leaving tonight," Chris told Fu, Karin, Deidera and Sakura. "Deidera, your audition didn't make the cut. Neither did yours, Sakura. Fu, I think it's obvious why you're on the chopping block, and Karin…well, you haven't done much either."

Karin crossed her arms but said nothing.

"However, Deidera is safe…and so is Sakura."

Both teens let out huge sighs of relief as they caught their marshmallows.

"Fu, Karin, this is the final marshmallow of the night…" Chris trailed off, building the suspense. Unfortunately for him, both teens didn't seem super unnerved. Both looking pretty certain of the outcome, and there were no twists to be had this night.

"Yeah," Chris finally said, "I guess it's not too big of a shocker. Karin, you're safe. Fu, it's time for you to leave."

Fu sighed and stood up. "I'm not surprised. I take full responsibility for my mess up." She hung her head, "I'm just sorry to let you down, team."

"Aw, it wasn't personal sweetie," Sakura told Fu, hugging her, "we just felt no one else really deserved it tonight!"

"I completely understand," Fu said, returning the hug. She grabbed the luggage and turned to Chris. "Okay, I'm ready!"

"Any last words?" Chris asked her.

Fu adressed her team, "It was awesome getting to know you guys! Kick some Fox butt!"

The Rhinos cheered at that, and Fu walked down the Dock. She boarded the Boat of Losers, and it sped off into the night.

"Ok Rhinos, you all are safe. You can head to bed." Chris told them. As the Rhinos left, he turned to the camera. "And thus ends the least-dramatic elimination ceremony so far! Fu might've messed up, but she held the L with pride! Who will take the next L? Find out next episode, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals:**_

Deidera: I sadly vote to eliminate Fu. She is nice, but she messed up, hn!"

Fu: Welp, I'm pretty sure I'm going home. I guess I'll vote for Karin, but I don't want her going home. I deserve it.

Karin: This vote is much easier than last time. I vote for Fu.

Kiba: Sorry Fu, you seem nice, but you lost us the challenge!

Konan: I vote for Fu.

Sakura: This vote doesn't matter, I need to calm down and work on rebuilding a friendship with Sasuke. I vote for Fu.

Sasuke: Time to unload some deadweight. Bye, Fu.

Shikamaru: Looks like I might've actually redeemed myself. Sorry, Fu.

Shino: I vote to eliminate Fu.

Temari: I vote for Fu. Nothing personal, but you messed up.

* * *

_**Votes**_:

Fu: 9 votes - (Deidera, Karin, Kiba, Konan, Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Shino, Temari).

Karin: 1 vote - (Fu).

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Karin, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya, Fu.**_

* * *

_**Last Words:**_

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee** \- "I tipped my hand to early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

**Tayuya - **"Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also _idiots_! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

**Fu - **"It was awesome getting to know you guys! Kick some Fox butt!"

* * *

**Sorry this took so long to get out! I got busy with work. Anyways, I hope you guys liked it! Let me know if you want Kakashi and Obito to take over as hosts.**


	7. The Sucky Outdoors!

**Damn. Sorry about the update time here, guys. I just kind of fell off the writing train for a while :(.**

**Are people still interested in this story? Should I bother continuing it? Let me know if you guys want to see more.**

**If I do decide to plow ahead with this story, Kakashi and Obito will NOT be the hosts. They'll stay as counselors. This means they won't get a ton of focus in regular chapters, but will be prominent during the Rest Days. I'll try to get them a couple of comedic scenes every regular chapter too, because they're pretty fun characters to write. **

**Now with all that said, let's get on with the story! Four down, seventeen to go before we crown our winner!**

* * *

"Last time, on Total Drama Island! It was a classic summer camp talent show for a challenge, which got some campers hyped up!" Fu, Deidera, and Naruto were shown eagerly performing their talents. "While some chose to sit back or had no talents." The camera did a quick cut of Hinata, Itachi, and Konan. "Surprisingly, Shikamaru stepped up for the Rampaging Rhinos, wowing the judges with his photographic memory." The slacker was shown scoring high. "However, a complete failure of an act by Fu meant the Rhinos were on the chopping block. In what was definitely our least dramatic elimination ceremony yet, Fu was voted off for her failure. She took it in good stride, though." Fu smiled at her teammates as they looked apologetic. "We're now down four campers, and things might be heating up in the competition! Who's getting their butt kicked off next? Find out right here, on Total! Drama! Island!"

The episode opened to show the eighteen drowsy campers sitting at the elimination area, rumps parked on all the stumps.

"When's breakfast?" Naruto complained, his stomach grumbling loudly.

"Yeah, I agree with him," Kiba said, jerking his thumb at Naruto. "What gives? It's early!"

Chris was standing in front of all the seated teens, grinning down at them. "Not to worry," Chris told them, "breakfast will be served shortly. But first, I have to tell you guys about today's challenge!"

"Alright!" Lee cheered, pumping his fist, and jumping to his feet, "let us get it on!"

"Easy there, tiger," Kisame told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. With a quick flex of his bicep, the other boy thumped back to his seat.

"Today's challenge will test your outdoor survival skills," Chris told them. "I'm not gonna lie to you," he added, putting his hands up defensively, "some of you _may_ not come back alive."

Gasps rang out through the campers, and Hinata and Ino clutched at each other nervously. Others, like TenTen, Konan, and Sasuke, looked less impressed.

"Just joking," Chris said quickly, quenching the fears of some of the more scared teens. "All you have to do is spend a night at a campsite in the middle of the woods. Everything you need is at the campsite. The kicker?" He held up two maps, "you have to _find _them." He tossed the maps to each team.

Temari and Naruto caught them and started poking through them. The map was quickly snatched out of Naruto's hands by a frowning Karui, to the blonds annoyance.

"Just watch out for bears," Chris warned them, dusting his hands off. "Had a couple of interns hospitalized in pre-produciton. It's best to just steer clear of them."

"Ha ha, very funny," Temari said as she rolled her eyes.

"Now, time for breakfast. It's quite the hike to the site, so you guys need to fuel up." From behind Chris, Kakashi and Obito appeared holding armfuls of plastic baggies. "Each camper gets a breakfast goodie bag." Obito and Kakashi started tossing the bags out to the campers. Well, Obito was tossing. Kakashi looked like he was having a little too much fun whipping the bags at the kids.

"Goodie bags?" Konan grumbled, barely catching the fastballed projectile before it nailed her in the face. "What are we, seven?"

"First team back for breakfast wins the challenges," Chris finished up the challenge introduction with his signature grin. "Losers, as usual, boot someone. Any questions?"

No one had any, so Chris took out his trusty airhorn. "Then if there are no further obligations…go!" He blew the airhorn, and the teams got up and jogged to the forest.

* * *

**(Confessional: Karin.)**

"Ugh," the nerdy girl complained, "outdoors and I are not the best of friends. No matter, as long as I blend in and don't screw up, I should have nothing to worry about!"

**(End Confessional: Karin.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Shino.)**

Shino began his Confessional in his usual quiet monotone, "being at one with nature is one of my favorite hobbies," he explained, "I've spent more than my fair share of time out in the wilderness. Now should finally be a good time to prove my worth to the team."

**(End Confessional: Shino.)**

* * *

The big group of teens traveled together for a very brief time. They were quickly met with a fork in the woods and, after a quick inspection of the maps, realized they had to split up to get to their campsites.

"Watch out for bears," Kurotsuchi joked as the Foxes look the left path.

"Right back atcha!" Kiba chuckled. From his head, Akamaru gave a little yip.

"Are you sure its smart to bring him with us?" Sasuke pointed out.

Kiba glared at the handsome boy. "I know you don't like my dog, dude. Can you stop trying to start something because of it?"

Sasuke opened his mouth to retort in his usual annoyed tone, but Sakura beat him to it.

"Sasuke wasn't trying to start anything, Kiba," Sakura explained with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "If anything...I think its a valid concern. What if there is dangerous stuff out in the woods? We wouldn't want little Akamaru to get hurt, would we?" She held out her hand for the dog, and Akamaru gave it a few excited licks.

"Ha! Akamaru is tough as nails," Kiba boasted. "He'll be fine."

"If you're sure," Temari said, a little hesitant. She looked back down at the map. "Seems like it'll be a while before we hit our campsite. Of course Chris had to put it practically on the other side of the island."

"Wouldn't be much of a challenge otherwise now would it?" Konan told her dully. Temari shot her an annoyed look.

Deidera pulled a lump of clay out of one of the pockets of his jeans and absentmindedly rubbed it between his fingers. "I hope there's something good to sculpt at our campsite, hn."

"What, like some trees? Maybe a rock?" Shikamaru asked him, half curious and half mocking.

Deidera rolled his eyes. "Like a tent, or a fire pit."

"Oh," Shikamaru blinked. "If Chris had it his way, there's probably some steel wool blankets and a note that says 'good luck, suckers.'"

That earned a few laughs from his team, and Shikamaru looked pleasantly surprised.

* * *

**(Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

"Y'know, Temari might've been right about the whole 'start trying and it could be worth it,' thing." Shikamaru confessed to the camera. He followed that up with a roll of his eyes, "not that I can _ever_ admit that to her."

**(End Confessional: Shikamaru.)**

* * *

"C'mon, guys!" Naruto and Lee shouted from up ahead of the trail. "Put some springs in your steps!"

"Shut up!" Karui barked.

"I think what our fiery teammate means," Kisame corrected, "is that it is not a race to our campsite. It doesn't matter which team reaches it first. All that matters is that we are the first ones back tomorrow."

"I know _that_," Naruto said obnoxiously, "I'm just excited! What if theres a bunch of cool stuff at the campsite?! Don't you want to see it?"

"Dude, it's still so early," TenTen complained, munching on an apple from her breakfast goodie bag. "Can't you tone it down a couple of notches?"

Naruto looked a little put out, and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Sorry…I'm just stoked."

Kurotsuchi walked up to the knucklehead and threw and arm around his shoulder, ruffling his hair. "It's all good man. Just try and read the room, ok?"

Naruto gave his team a sheepish grin. "Alright," he said in an emphatic whisper, "woohoo, can't wait to get to our campsite!"

Hinata was watching these interactions with a shy smile on her face. Ino took note of this and slid over to the girl as the team continued walking.

"Soooo," Ino said coyly, "you gonna tell Naruto you like him soon?"

Hinata let out a little squeak of embarrassment and instantly blushed. "Just the thought of it…I might die of embarrassment!"

Ino rolled her eyes, "What's there to be embarrassed about?" She scolded, "you're a babe, Hinata! Naruto would _swoon_ to think there was someone as pretty as you crushing on him!"

It was like talking to the wall, though. Hinata just shook her head, her vocabulary dissolving into different squeaks and whimpers.

Ino slowed down and smacked her forehead. She gave Hinata's back a crooked grin. "Guess I'll have to go for the more _hands-on_ approach, then…" She rubbed her hands together excitedly.

* * *

The sun continued its way through the sky as the campers trudged through the woods. The campers talked and chatted as they ate their meager breakfast. However, that food was soon gone. Minutes dragged into hours and the stomachs began to grumble.

"It's 3 o'clock," Karin grumbled, checking her watch. "We've been at this for nearly six hours!" She quickened her pace to catch up with Temari, who was at the head of the group. "Are you sure you're reading the map right?" She asked irritably.

Temari shot her a glare, "yes, I'm sure." She pointed to a spot on the map, "According to this, we're nearly there."

"Finally," Shikamaru groaned, "I could fall asleep right here."

"Don't be such a wimp," Kiba scoffed. "It's just a little walk!"

"A little walk," Konan repeated with a dull chuckle. "It's been six hours, Kiba."

Kiba just grinned at her. "Must be my muscly legs, then. I haven't noticed."

"Ooh, I think I see it!" Sakura said excitedly, pointing up ahead.

Sure enough, about thirty yards up the trees parted. The nine Rhinos ran ahead and entered the clearing.

"Woohoo, we made it!" Deidera cheered, looking around the campsite.

The campsite was small and simple. A pile of stones and a messy stack of chopped firewood. One 24-case of bottled water. One large tent, completely unassembled.

Kiba took Akamaru off his head and put him down in the grass. The dog sniffed around, chasing and nipping at bugs. "Jeeze," Kiba said, a little disappointed, "there ain't much here, is there?"

"It is a camping challenge," Shino pointed out. "I'm surprised they provided us with water."

"Probably not a safe source nearby," Karin guessed, walking over to the tent. "It doesn't look like the tent came with instructions either. We'll have to do trial and error."

"Do you have any experience setting up tents?" Sakura asked Karin hopefully, "you're smart, right?"

Karin looked over her shoulder, unamused. "Camping is not really on my preferred list of activities," She told her, "I prefer staying inside." She scratched her chin and returned her attention back to the unassembled tent. "Though, I think I might be able to figure this out. I'll need some hands, though."

"I've got two," Deidera said happily, wiggling his arms for emphasis. "Just tell me what to do, hn!"

"I'll help too," Temari announced, joining Karin and Deidera. "We need other tasks done too, though." She told the rest of the team. "We need that fire pit set up for warmth. And unless we all want to go the next twenty hours without eating, we'll need some food too."

"Where the heck are we supposed to find food out here?" Sakura complained. "Are we going to have to eat twigs and berries?"

"Don't be so dramatic," Sasuke told her, heading over to the fire pit and beginning to rearrange the stones into a circle. "I'll take care of the fire."

"I can go find some plants to eat," Shino said. "My family and I are quite knowledgable in that regard."

"Just be careful on what you choose," Temari told him, "that last thing we need is someone medically evacuated because they ate some poisonous bush."

"Do not fear," Shino assured her, his sunglasses glinting, "the stuff I bring back might not be particularly tasty, but it will be safe."

"Good," Temari told her, trusting him.

"I know how to fish, too!" Kiba said excitedly. "Though it might be kind of hard without a rod…"

"Won't hurt to try," Shikamaru yawned, sitting down into the dirt and sprawling out. "I'll help out in a sec, just let me rest my eyes…"

Sakura approached Sasuke, a shy smile on her face. "Will you be needing any help, Sasuke?" She asked timidly.

Sakura was no fool. She knew the poem she had read the challenge previous had been a major blunder. She had thought that Sasuke had been warming up to her and, by showing him her feelings in a poem, he'd see how she felt. However, ever since then, he had been acting more distant than ever. It was time to pump the brakes a little, and she if she could salvage anything from what had one been a potential friendship.

Sasuke gave her a wary look, but noticed the lack of 'hunger' in her eyes and her relatively calm demeanor. He shrugged. "I guess so," he told her. "Help me arrange these in a circle. Then I'll start a fire up. Fortunately for us," he allowed himself a proud smile, "I'm something of an expert at starting fires."

"I'm not surprised," Sakura smiled. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her, so she quickly added, "because of that beach party. You handled that fire so comfortably. Anyone could tell you had expertise in it."

Sasuke smirked at her and Sakura fought the rising heat in her face. Focusing on the task at hand, she began grabbing the rocks and arranging them in a circle with Sasuke.

"Someone go with Kiba to make sure he doesn't get lost." Temari said.

"I won't get lost," Kiba assured her, "I'll take Akamaru with me. His sense of smell is amazing and he'll lead me back if I get turned around."

Temari didn't look convinced, "Look, I'm not doubting your pups nose," she told him gently, "but if anyone gets lost, it's gonna be a serious blow to the team."

"And I'm telling you not to worry," Kiba repeated. "Look, I can make my own decisions, ok?"

Temari sighed. "Fine. Good luck getting some food for us."

Kiba nodded and tapped his thighs twice with his hands. Akamaru, who had been lounging in a sun beam, hopped to his feet and zipped over to his owner. Kiba scooped him up and plopped him onto his head. He nodded at his team and headed out north east from the campsite. "I think I can hear running water, so hopefully I'll be able to grab some fish," he called to his team before disappearing into the trees.

"Shino, you should get going too," Temari said, returning to the tent.

"Shino left ten minutes ago," Konan pointed out.

Temari blinked. "Oh. Good."

Konan, the only member on her team not currently participating in an activity besides Shikamaru, put her hands in her pockets. "Anything I can do to help, or whatever?" She asked Temari curiously.

"Honestly, not really," Temari told her, struggling with a tent pole. "Any more people helping us on the tent will quickly become a 'too many cooks' situation." As if to emphasize her point, Deidera and Karin started bickering about where the flap of the tent hooked onto a pole. "Just take it easy. Maybe go bug Shikamaru. I'll let you know if we need you."

Konan nodded and headed over to Sasuke and Sakura, watching as the two started to build the fire.

* * *

"Woohoo! We made it!" Naruto cheered.

After the six or so hours spent walking, Naruto's enthusiasm was now a welcome note of positivity. All of the Foxes were tired, sore, and starving.

"Finally," Ino groaned, plopping her butt onto the ground, "I'm so beat!"

Itachi also seemed a little pooped. He took a knee by the fire pit and let out a deep breath.

"I know we're all tired, guys," TenTen said diplomatically, "but we've got some stuff to do if we don't want this night to suck, so let's just get it over with."

"I agree," Lee gave TenTen an exuberant thumbs up. "I can take point on the tent!"

"Oh no you don't," Karui warned, quickly following Lee to the unmade tent. "You'll just ruin it!"

Lee scowled, "I ask you to have a little faith in me," he told her, "I know how to assemble a tent!"

"Yeah, back off, Karui!" Naruto told her, walking up to her and mashing a finger into her shoulder. "Where do you get off being such a jerk to us?"

A vein in Karui's temple throbbed, "Because you two are a couple of _morons_. And it's not just me, everyone else thinks so too!" She gestured to the rest of the team, who were awkwardly looking away from the confrontation.

Hinata looked like she wanted to speak up, but couldn't find the courage.

"At least we're fun to be around," Naruto defended himself. "All you do is complain."

Karui hesitated, "that's not true," it was her turn to be on the defensive.

Kisame chose that time to step in. "You guys are both right." He said calmly. "Naruto and Lee are couple of knuckleheads. Karui whines a lot. But we're still a team, and this in-fighting isn't helping anyone." He threw a sharp glare around at the rest of the team. "_Understood_?"

Most of the Foxes gulped and nodded.

"Why don't Karui, Naruto and Lee work together to put the tent up?" Ino offered, "it might be a good team building exercise."

Kisame shot her a devilish smirk. "What a wonderful idea, Ino."

Itachi stood from his resting position and joined Kisame and Ino at the figurative head of the team. "I can work on creating the fire pit. It would be nice to have some assistance lugging the rocks around, though."

Kisame flexed his massive arms. "Say no more."

"Who is gonna find us some food?" TenTen asked. "Surely there's got to be something around."

"I can go search for some berries or something," Ino offered.

"I'll go with you," TenTen told her.

"I can try setting up some simple snares," Kurotsuchi offered. "Maybe score us a rabbit or two for dinner."

"You know how to do that?" Karui asked, surprised.

"Sure, we hunt all the time on the farm." Kurotsuchi told her.

"Is that really necessary?" Itachi asked, not looking super thrilled at the idea. "We should manage with some berries and the like. It's only one night, it's not like we'll starve to death."

"Maybe not," Kisame told him, dropping one of the heavy stones into the proper place for the fire pit, "But I don't think I like our odds of making it back before the other team tomorrow if we're all starving and weak."

"That's true," Naruto agreed, "they'll smoke us."

"Alright, I'll set some up," Kurotsuchi confirmed, "no promise I'll actually catch anything, but we might as well try."

"Um, is there anything I can do?" Hinata asked Kisame shyly.

"You can just stand there and look pretty, darling." Kisame told her, "or if you really fancy helping, join Ino and TenTen on the hunt for some berries."

Hinata flushed a little at the casual compliment, but nodded and hurried off after Ino and TenTen.

That left only Itachi, Kisame, and the squabbling tent trio at the campsite.

"You seemed unhappy with the potential of rabbit for dinner," Kisame pointed out. "Are you a vegetarian?"

"I am," Itachi confirmed. "I just don't see the need for pointless animal slaughter."

Kisame barked out a laugh. "I can't say I'll ever agree with you there, friend. Meat is the best."

"I don't have any quarrels with people who enjoy it," Itachi told the big man, "it is just not for me." He bent down and began fidgeting with the logs to arrange them into a proper format.

Kisame watched the quiet young man curiously as he did so. To be honest, he wasn't quite sure what to make of the elder Uchiha. He didn't seem to possess any of the arrogance Kisame had witnessed from Sasuke. In fact, they almost seemed like polar opposites. "So," the big man offered as he rolled some of the last stones into the circle. "I must admit I'm curious…what was it like growing up with a silver spoon in your mouth?"

Itachi shot the bigger man a sharp look, but Kisame quickly put his hands up in a placating gesture.

"Perhaps a poor choice of words," Kisame admitted, lowering his hands. "My intention was not to offend. While there are obvious perks, I can imagine your upbringing has been…_challenging _in certain aspects."

A dry smirk crept up Itachi's face. "You could say that," he agreed. "All in all, I am thankful for the opportunities and ease I've had growing up. On the other hand, it can be tough to feel truly close to people."

Kisame nodded, his face sympathetic. It was a strange look on his usually coldly amused face. "I can imagine. People suck."

"Hn," Itachi stood up and examined the twos work. "It looks good. I just need some rocks to make a spark."

Kisame nodded, but Karui stopped what she was doing from the tent and stood up. "Oi!" The loudmouth called over to them, fidgeting through her pockets. She came up with a lighter and whipped it over to the two boys.

Itachi snatched it easily out of the air and examined it with mild surprise.

"You little delinquent," Kisame grinned. "What on earth do you carry a lighter around for?"

Karui shrugged. "Never know when it could be useful." She returned to working on the tent with Naruto and Lee, biting her tongue to keep from snapping at the two.

Kisame watched the three work, a predatory gleam in his eye.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.) **

"I must remembered to thank Ino later," Kisame grinned. "She capitalized quite deliciously on me putting the three loudmouths together. Now, if they explode all over each other, we'll have scapegoats a plenty if we lose." He leaned against the wall of the Confessional, arms crossed. "It's always good to stay one step ahead."

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

Night was falling quickly. The sun threatened to disappear over the horizon, bathing the forest the campers were in an orange light.

"Where are Shino and Kiba?" Sakura paced around the now crackling campfire. "It's nearly dark out!"

"I knew I should've forced someone to go with Kiba," Temari cursed.

A sharp laugh came from the brush behind them, making the other Rhinos jump.

"Take it easy, will ya? I'm fine." A grinning Kiba emerged into the firelight, holding up a bundle of raw fish.

"Wow, you found some!" Shikamaru said, surprise flashing across his face. "And a lot at that!"

"Yeah, I wanted to get one for each of us, which is why it took me so long," Kiba explained, walking over to the fire.

"I can cook these up," Sakura offered, "I'm a pretty good cook."

Kiba plopped down and plucked Akamaru from his lap, placing the little dog in his lap. "Sounds good to me...I'm starved." He glanced around the campfire, taking in his teammates. "Hey, where's Shino? He not back yet?"

"Nope," Karin told him. "No sign of him."

Sasuke let out a small 'pfft', drawing the attention of his teammates. "Shino will be fine," he told them. "He's a weirdo, sure, but he can take care of himself."

That seemed to settle the nerves of some of the more nervous campers, and they all fell into casual conversation as Sakura began to descale the fish.

"Y'know, Sasuke," Sakura said, settling down next to him as she continued to descale the fish with her bare hands, "I think that's the nicest thing you've said about anyone since you've been here."

Sasuke scoffed, but knew he couldn't really refute her claim. "I guess," he muttered, "I still don't like the kid, but he's got balls. Not many people have the nerve to scold me like I'm some kind of misbehaving child, so I'll give him credit for that."

Sakura giggled, stripping the scales from a fish in one fluid motion.

Sasuke noticed and raised an eyebrow. "You're awfully good at that. You know how to cook?"

"A little," Sakura said modestly, spearing the fish onto a stick and setting it over the fire. "Just the essentials."

Sasuke nodded his approval. He seemed to be struggling on whether or not to say something, but Sakura didn't notice. After a few seconds of internal strife, he eventually spit it out. "I'm jealous. I have no idea how to cook."

Sakura froze mid spear. She felt her face heat up at his words. Sasuke jealous of _her_? "Wha?" She cleared her throat and speared the fish, trying to act casual. "What do you mean?"

"Tch," Sasuke seemed to already regret this admission, and he was pointedly looking into the fire. "I just meant…growing up, I never had to cook for myself. Its an important skill. I wish I knew how."

Sakura smiled at him, continuing to work. "Well if that's the case, I can teach you how."

"That's ok," Sasuke said quickly. "I didn't say that because I wanted your help."

This time, it was Sakura's turn to roll her eyes. "I know that, silly," she told him. "Here, we'll start now!" She plopped a dead fish into his lap.

Sasuke stared at it in revulsion, quickly yanking it off his pants before it stained them with stinky fish water. "What do I do?"

"Find the little flap near the base of the fish tail. You'll have to dig in a little and pierce the skin," Sakura instructed. She copied her words with a fish of her own. "Then, peel it off the one side like bandaid."

Sasuke followed her instructions, ripping into the scaly flesh and stripping it from the meat. "I did it," he said unnecessarily, feeling a ripple of pride in his chest.

"Nice work," Sakura told him warmly, "now, do the same for the other side. We're not being fancy here, so we're cooking them whole. Then we'll pick the meat off once its cooked."

Sasuke nodded and finished descaling the fish. He speared it with a stick and set it over the fire.

"See! Lesson one complete," Sakura said, offering him a cheeky little grin. Sasuke hesitated a moment before returning a smile of his own.

"Thanks," he offered.

The two were distracted by Deidera, who was clapping his hands together. "Hn! Shino, you've returned!"

Indeed he had. The strange young man walked into the firelight with quite the many spoils. His arms overflowed with leafy greens and berries.

"Damn, what a haul," Konan whistled.

"My apologies for taking so long," Shino said quietly, heading over to the fire and gently placing his findings on the ground. "I wanted to make sure I had enough for everyone."

"No apology needed," Temari assured him. "Good work, Shino. Between this and the fish Kiba gathered, we'll eat well tonight."

Shino glanced at the tent and the fire. "You guys did a good job putting up the tent," He noted.

"Of course," Deidera said happily. "Its a form of art, really."

"Well lets get eating," Shikamaru drawled, "I'm starved."

* * *

"We've returned!" Ino sang happily, leaping gracefully into the camp clearing. Hinata and TenTen were right behind her. Notably, Hinata had shed her bulky sweatshirt and tied it around her waste. The cause of this was soon noticed as she had created a makeshift pouch to store an enormous amount of berries.

"We've got berries!" TenTen said happily.

"Nice job, guys!" Naruto said happily, bounding over to the three girls. He quickly stuck a hand in Hinata's pouch and pulled out a handful of berries. Hintata let out a surprised 'eep' and stumbled back, nearly spilling all the berries over.

THWACK.

"Oi!" Ino growled, having just smacked Naruto on the back of the head. "You can't just get all grabby with a lady, pal!"

"Aha-owww," Naruto whined, rubbing the back of his head. "What do you mean? I just wanted some berries!"

"It's okay," Hianta said quietly, stopping Ino's arm from slapping the boy again, "I was just surprised, that's all…"

"Hmm," Ino lowered her arm as a sulking Naruto popped the berries in his mouth. The model noticed that Kurotsuchi was back, and that two hunks of meat were roasting over the fire. "Oh, you were able to get some meat?"

Kurotsuchi gave her a wink and a thumbs up. "Two little suckers. Should be at least a couple of bites for each of us."

Ino looked over at the tent, which was tough to see due to the dwindling daylight. "How'd the tent building go?"

"Abyssmal," Karui said bluntly. "I don't even know how it's standing. They broke so many pieces."

"They?!" Lee repeated incredulously. His bushy eyebrows were threatening to disappear into his bowl cut.

Karui sighed and swallowed her pride. "Fine, _we_ broke so many pieces. But it's standing upright. As long as no one bumps into it, it should hopefully hold its form."

"That's comforting," TenTen grumbled, heading over to the fire and plopping down next to Kisame. "When do we eat? I could eat a whole freakin buffet."

"Soon," Kurotsuchi assured her, "a couple more minutes and these rabbits are ready to go."

The fire cracked and sparked, and Kisame subconsciously scooted back a little bit.

"Man, you _really_ don't like fire, don't you?" Karui noted.

Kisame shook his head. "Can't stand it. I understand how essential it is…but it unnerves me."

"Aren't real men supposed to love fire?" Naruto belted out, though his tone was more curious than mocking.

Kisame smirked a little and shook his head. "A real man admits his flaws. And since I have so few flaws…" he wiggled his eyebrows, "I don't mind."

TenTen laughed a little, "Real modest, aren'tcha?"

Kisame shrugged, leaning back onto his palms and tilting his head to the sky. He inhaled deeply, but quickly jerked his head back to the group.

"Everything ok?" Itachi asked, a little worried at his sudden movement.

"I smell rain," Kisame grumbled, "just perfect."

Lee inhaled loudly, and so did Naruto. "I do not smell anything out of the ordinary," Lee told the group.

"Take my word, bowl cut. I know water." Kisame told him. "It's coming. A lot of it too."

* * *

A drop of rain plopped onto Konan's head, making the goth girl jump.

"Hey, you ok?" Kiba asked, noticing her panic.

Konan gave gave the top of her head a quick pat. After confirming it was water, she showed the team. "I just got hit by a rain drop."

The Rhinos had been lounging around the campfire, happy and full. The fish and greens had made for a filling if not terribly exciting meal. After their long day of setting up camp and walking through the woods, it was much appreciated.

"Welp, good thing we have this badass tent to protect us, hn!" Deidera said.

Sure enough, a couple more rain drops plopped down.

"We should probably settle in before we get too wet." Temari noted, glancing up at the black sky. "We have no blankets or any way to get dry."

The rest of the Rhinos agreed with this statement. Shino gathered up the small amount of leftover greens and made his way over to the tent. He stepped inside and took his shoes off.

The tent was…just a tent, really. The only upside was that there was a bit of padding on the floor, so it wasn't _totally_ like sleeping on the hard ground. One big room and no blankets.

"Hopefully this tent is water proof, or we'll _really_ be miserable," Konan grumbled, following Shino in.

The pitter-patter of the raindrops on the roof of the tent began to intensify, and the rest of the Rhinos filed in, squealing and giggling as they fled the rain.

Kiba took off his hoodie and wrapped it around the slightly damp Akamaru. "Bellies full, tent setup, I think it's time for a nap. Eh, Akamaru?"

Akamaru, nice and toasty in Kiba's hoodie, panted sleepily.

"Looks like the tent is holding up," Temari noted, looking relieved. "Alright team, let's get some sleep."

The team settled down around the tent, ready for sleep to come.

* * *

The Foxes were just finishing up their meal of rabbit and berries when the rain began.

"Told you guys," Kisame said as the team ushered into the tent.

"Just be really careful," Karui winced as the Foxes filed in. "It's not super sturdy. One wrong move and it might come down."

As if the world was mocking them, Ino tripped over her own feet and slammed into the side of the tent. The Foxes screamed as the tent collapsed on top of them.

"Help!" Kurotsuchi screeched, her intense fear of being buried alive coming into full effect. "Get me out! Get me out!"

The Foxes were trapped for a short while as they dug through the canvas and poles to find the exit. In the end TenTen was the first to reach the exit, and she stumbled out into the pouring rain, frazzled and disheveled. She quickly collected herself and bent down to hold open the tent flap.

One by one, the Foxes found their way out into the wet night.

Kurotsuchi clambered out and immediately sat on the muddy dirt. She wrapped her arms around her knees, eyes wide and breathing shallow.

"Hey, it's ok," Hinata comforted, bending down to comfort the girl.

Naruto walked over, pushing his sopping hair out of his face and also crouching down. "Don't sweat it, Kurotsuchi," he grinned at her, "it was just a tent!"

"Yes, see?" Hinata said, pointing at the tent. "It was just a few inches of canvas. You're alright now."

Kurotsuchi registered this and slowly began to cease her shaking. "You're…you're right," she stammered, giving her head a rough shake. "Yeah, I'm ok…" she smiled gratefully at the two, "thanks, guys!"

Naruto clapped Hinata on the shoulder, making her flush. "No problem, Kurotsuchi."

"While it's all well and good that she is fine," Karui growled, "what the hell are we gonna do?! Our tent is screwed!"

It was true. The tent was now a mess of broken poles and canvas. Couple that with the extreme darkness, there wasn't a chance in hell that they could get it back up.

"I can barely see anything!" Lee exclaimed.

Itachi put a comforting hand on Lee's shoulder. "This is an unfortunate turn of events," he addressed the team at large. His voice, while quiet, seemed to echo through the rain. "There is no denying it…tonight will be miserable."

Kisame chuckled darkly, "at least he's honest about it."

"We're going to be wet, cold, and probably not get any sleep." Itachi continued. "But we just have to take that on the chin. Such is life."

His words washed over the team, much like the rain that was now soaking them to the bone.

"Itachi is right," TenTen finally said. "We just gotta stick it out."

"We wouldn't have to stick it out if _someone_ hadn't tripped," Karui said with a venomous glare at Ino. "At least we know who to vote off if we lose."

Ino had the decency to hang her head in shame. "I'm so sorry guys," she said sorrowfully, "it was a total accident."

"It's ok, Ino," Hinata said, coming to her friends defense. "Stuff like this happens."

"She's right," TenTen agreed. "We haven't lost yet. Yeah, we're stuck out here, but we can still beat the Foxes back to the camp tomorrow."

"For Ino's sake, I hope you're right…" Karui growled.

They were silent for a few minutes, before a flash of lightning erupted the sky in light, briefly illuminating everything around them.

"Ok, I'm officially freezing," Ino whimpered, arms cradled around herself.

"There's no point staying out in this open campsite," Lee pointed out to the group, "perhaps we should find a large tree to take shelter under, to shield us from the worst of the rain?"

"That's…actually a pretty good idea, Eyebrows," Kisame noted, "I concur. Let's go."

None of the team had any objections and all were eager to get out of the rain, so they jogged out of their campsite and deeper into the forest. It was a little sketchy, what with it being so dark and venturing into unknown territory, but the chilly rain was enough of a deterrent that their main concern was getting out of it. Eventually, after a few minutes of searching, they found a large oak tree. At the base, the rain was significantly less severe.

Unfortunately, that didn't change the fact that the campers were still freezing and wet. Not to mention the thunder and lightning had picked up significantly. The Foxes painted a sorrowful bunch, scattered around the wide base of the ancient oak; scraping and rubbing mud off their clothes and attempting to wring out their clothes in a losing battle.

"You're looking a little chilly there, Pigtails." Kisame noted TenTen's shivering form.

TenTen looked over at him with narrowed eyes. "And you're not?"

Kisame shrugged. "The cold never bothered me much…"

"Okay, Elsa," TenTen joked, "lucky you."

It was true. Kisame seemed to be rather comfortable being soaked. Besides, it was still summer, so it wasn't _that_ cold.

"Maybe we should huddle for warmth?" Ino suggested, suffering more than most in her rather skimpy outfit.

"I shall warm all who need it with my fiery passion!" Lee proclaimed, "just ask, and I shall assist."

Karui scoffed. "Okay, creeper."

"It is true," Lee protested, "feel my hand! My temperature is always quite high! My youthful passion fuels my heated personality!"

Karui rolled her eyes. She reached a skeptical hand out to Lee's fist. Her eyes widened. It seemed Lee was truthful, as his hand was much warmer than it should've been.

"Are you running a fever or something?" Karui asked in alarm, her hand moving up his arm, which was also just as warm.

Lee retreated his arm and put up his thumb, grinning. "I am feeling quite well! Like I said, if anyone wishes for warmth, feel free!" He put a hand to his heart, "Do not worry about any mal-intent on my part, for I am merely looking out for the good of the team! No strings attached!"

A blond blitz tackled the boy. Naruto snuggled into Lee's side, "Mmm, toasty!"

However, Ino had other plans. "Back off, Naruto!" She told him, prying him out of the way and replacing her body with his. "Haven't you ever heard of ladies first?" She draped Lee's arm around herself and glared at the blonde.

"But I'm chilly!" Naruto whined.

"Go snuggle someone else then!" Ino told him crossly, "how about…hmmm…Hinata!"

"Me?!" Hinata squeaked.

"Yeah, she looks toasty. Go mooch some of her heat!"

Before Hinata could protest, Naruto crossed the gap to them and wrapped his arms around her from the back, resting his chin on top of her head.

"Ooh, you're right!" Naruto said as Hinata heated up out of embarrassment. "She _is_ warm!"

"Told ya!" Ino grinned, "get comfy, you two. It's gonna be a long night!"

Karui had reluctantly sat down next to Lee and was leaning her back on him to absorb some of his heat. The others had elected to avoid said cuddling, though Kisame and TenTen were leaning on each other back-to-back.

"We should try and get some sleep," Itachi said wisely. "Even a little bit of fretful sleep is better than none."

Talking settled down. Hinata, seated on Naruto's lap with the oblivious boy still devouring her warmth, had been quiet. The more time went on, the less mortified she felt and the more comfortable she became. Naruto was leaned up against the tree trunk, and his steady breathing as he dozed off compelled her to do the same.

She might have to thank Ino come tomorrow.

* * *

**(Confessional: Ino.)**

Ino gave the camera a broad grin. "Hah! You see that? Sakura's got nothing on me!" She pumps her fist. "Score one for Ino!" Her happy expression fades slowly, "though I hope we can still pull of the win somehow. I think I might be in trouble after my little trip…"

**(End Confessional: Ino.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

"Man, Hinata sure was toasty," Naruto said happily. The poor chap was oblivious, and he put a hand under his chin thoughtfully. "She smelled good, too!"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

Most of the Rhinos were sleeping in the tent. One got up, though, and picked up a little bundle. He quietly crept around his teammates and made for the exit. A clap of thunder erupted overhead, and the little bundle whimpered.

"Easy, buddy," Kiba whispered as he and Akamaru stepped out into the rain. "I know you gotta pee. I do too, frankly. Let's just get it over with and we'll be back in no time. I know you don't like thunder."

Akamaru whimpered again. Kiba carried him across the campsite into the nearby woods. He set him down and unzipped his fly. The two relieved themselves, but as they were finishing up, the sky erupted in a brilliant light, momentarily illuminating the entire forest.

_**KA-BOOM**_

The largest clap of thunder yet reverberated through the air. The strike itself had been fairly close by, and the ground shook from the impact.

That was enough to send poor Akamaru over the edge, and the terrified pup took off in the opposite direction of the initial lightning strike.

"Whoa! Akamaru!" Kiba bolted after him. He followed the pup for about thirty seconds, slowly gaining on him but stumbling a couple of times, before he finally scooped the little guy up. "Easy, guy…easy," he kissed him on the top of the head. "You're ok." He looked around, "alright, back the way we came." He turned around and walked straight into something hard and…furry?

"What the hell?" Kiba pat the furry thing and heard it grunt and snort. He paled as another flash of lightning briefly illuminated the sky. A bear, 6 feet tall, staring down at the boy in mild annoyance.

"AIIIIE!" Kiba screamed, turning on his heel. He began to blindly sprint through the woods, ducking and weaving through branches as they materialized out of the darkness. He had no way of knowing if the bear was on his tail, but he knew he had to keep moving. Akamaru, cradled in his arms, gave a woeful whimper.

* * *

The sun began to peek over the horizon. The rain had finally stopped, giving the poor Foxes a little time to dry out a bit. Some, like Hinata, Naruto, Lee, Ino and Kurotuschi, had managed to get some shut eye. Others, like Kisame and Karui, had only dozed. Thus, Kisame and Karui were the first ones aware that the sun was rising.

"Alright, guys," Kisame said in a loud whisper, not wanting to be too jarring. "Sun's coming up. We should get heading back to camp."

The campers, dirty, damp and downtrodden, groaned and moaned as they began to wake. TenTen pushed herself off of Kisame's back and to her feet, cracking her back with a grunt.

"Well, I got practically zero sleep," Itachi sighed.

"This sucks," Ino sounded on the verge of tears.

"Do not fear, comrades," Lee said sleepily, "we must not give up hope."

Hinata quietly extricated herself from Naruto's sleepy arms and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes. Ino walked over to the girl and threw and arm around her shoulder, giving her a wink.

Hinata responded with a small smile and the two began to walk down the trail they had traveled the day before.

"Lets go, team!" Kurotsuchi agreed, following the two ladies.

One by one, two by two, they began to stagger back towards camp.

* * *

Temari was the first to awaken from her slumber. She quickly scrambled to the flap of the tent, waking a few of her teammates in the process. The sun was shining merrily in the sky, but it was still early.

"Time to go?" Sasuke asked, surprisingly alert given he was just woken up.

Temari nodded. "Let's go, team! Up and at 'em!"

With many a moan and groan, the Rhinos roused themselves and got out of the tent. They hurried down the path and began jogging towards camp.

Minutes turned into hours as the Rhinos steadily made progress towards their destination. However, a certain camper realized something was terribly wrong, and stopped in her tracks.

Shino bumped into the back of Konan. Konan bounced forward, but the bug boy was quick to steady her.

"Everything ok, Konan?" Shino asked, a concerned tinge to his voice.

Konan surveyed her team. Her facial expression gave the impression that everything was indeed _not_ okay. "Where…where is Kiba?" She finally managed to get out.

The rest of the Rhinos froze in their tracks. After a few seconds of panicky gazing, they confirmed that Kiba was in fact nowhere in sight.

"What the…where is he?" Sasuke said sharply.

Sakura covered her mouth in horror. "You don't think…you don't think something happened to him, do you?"

Temari looked considerably paler, but she needed to remain focused. "We can't worry about him right now. I hope he's ok but we have a destination to get to. I don't think Chris would let him get hurt."

Konan didn't look particularly assured, nor did the rest of the team. However, they didn't have much of a choice other than keep moving forward. They just had to hope Kiba was ok.

* * *

The sun steadily rose. Noon came and went. Chris, who had been waiting since around 11am, now found himself lounging in a lawn chair by the elimination area. Kakashi and Obito were nowhere to be found.

Chef walked up with a coffee as Chris's wristwatch signaled 4pm.

"Still nothing?" Chef asked.

"Nope," Chris shook his head, "think the bears got 'em?"

"My money's on the lightning," Chef shook his head, not looking particularly concerned.

As if on cue, the sound of many footsteps could be heard echoing from the edge of the forest. Chris quickly stood up from his chair, dusting himself off and taking a more official posture. "And I think a team is coming now!"

Sure enough, one team emerged into the elimination area, panting and wheezing.

"Congratulations…Rhinos! You are the first ones back!" Chris congratulated the team.

The Rhinos, to the host's surprise, didn't seem to excited by the victory. "Is Kiba here?" Temari asked.

"Kiba?" Chris repeated, looking a little confused. "What do you mean?" He did a quick headcount of the teens in front of him, "oh, seems like you guys are short one boy and one dog!"

"No!"

Everyone turned to the edge of the forest to see the source of the cry. The ragged, still damp and miserable Foxes stumbled out of the woods. At the sight of the Rhinos standing there, they all collapsed onto their knees.

"We gave it our all," Lee panted, flopping onto his back, "yet it still wasn't enough."

"What the hell happened to you guys?" Shikamaru asked them. "You guys look like crap."

"Two words," Karui panted, "No. Tent."

Ino hung her head, looking defeated.

"Ah-ah-ah!" Chris tutted, "now hold on just a second there, campers!"

The teens all turned to look at Chris.

"Unfortunately, I can't declare the Rhinos the winner of the challenge, due to them being short one player," the host explained with a cheeky grin, "so, since the Foxes are all present and accounted for…they win the challenge!"

The Foxes all gaped at one another as they let the news sink in.

"We won?! We won!" Ino shakily got to her feet and raised her hands in victory. "No way!"

Kurotsuchi let out a tired laugh and flopped onto the ground completely. "It was all worth it!"

"Foxes, this challenge victory also comes with a reward," Chris told them, "a three course dinner!"

"Pinch me, I'm dreaming," Naruto blubbered, on the verge of tears.

A new voice was heard. "Get moving, dog boy."

The big group turned one last time towards the woods, where three familiar faces emerged.

An annoyed looking Kakashi and a sympathetic Obito, with a shaken, filthy and wide-eyed Kiba behind them.

"Kiba!" The Rhinos rushed to their teammate.

"Are you okay?" Temari said sharply, grabbing the boy gently by his shoulders and giving him an intense one over. "Are you hurt?"

Kiba shook his head. Akamaru's head was sticking out of the scared boy's hoodie, shaking like a leaf. "Just…just thirsty." He croaked out.

Chef tossed a water bottle towards the group. Shino caught it and handed it to Kiba. Kiba took it and drank greedily.

Temari let out a deep breath. "Well…I'm glad you're unhurt. We were worried about you."

"Touching moment and all," Chris chose to chime in, "but unfortunately you guys _are_ the losers. Dinner will be soon and then you have to kick someone off. As for the Foxes, I know how hungry you guys must be. The feast is available right now for you guys."

Most of the Foxes were too tired to even cheer properly, but they were excited nonetheless. They trudged off to the Mess Hall to stuff their faces.

The Rhinos returned their attention back to Kiba. "What happened, Kiba?" Karin asked.

Kiba gulped, still looking shaken. "Can…can we just do this in our cabin or something? I don't really wanna be outside anymore."

The Rhinos complied and they moseyed over to their cabin.

"Is Akamaru okay?" Konan asked as they all entered the boy's side. They settled themselves on different bunks, turning to Kiba for an explanation.

"He's fine," Kiba said, withdrawing the still shaking pup and placing him on his pillow. "First off, I just wanna say my bad for blowing the challenge. I'm really sorry." This was met with silence, so Kiba kept speaking. "Anyways, last night I had to take a leak, and so did Akamaru. We quickly went outside to take a leak, but there was big crash of thunder that scared Akamaru. He took off into the woods and I had to chase him down. We would've been fine if we hadn't run into the bear."

Sakura covered her mouth with her hands. "A _bear_?!"

Kiba nodded, wincing at the memory. "It was dark, and I was trying to find my way back to camp and smacked right into the thing. It was huge. I just kind of blind panicked after that, and kept running. I didn't stop moving until it started getting light out….then I was so tired I just climbed a tree with Akamaru and waited for someone to find me." He looked down, ashamed, "I was too afraid to leave. I didn't know where any other bears might be."

Silence settled over his teammates.

"And don't even say it," Kiba said suddenly, his tone and look bitter. He was staring at Sasuke, who was staring back cooly at him. "I know it's because of Akamaru that this happened, ok? I learned my lesson." He hung his head. "I know what this means for me…"

The Rhinos didn't know how to react to this admission of defeat. Eventually, Temari spoke up. "Well, all that matters in the grand scheme of things is that you're okay, Kiba. This is just a stupid game, all things considered."

Kiba nodded, eyes glued to the floor. "I know," he said hollowly. He looked at his team, "if its okay with you guys, Im gonna take a nap before dinner."

"Of course," Temari said, "let's go, team."

After that, not much more was needed to be said. The Rhinos left the cabin and drifted off by themselves. Shino was the exception, as he paused on the porch. He stared at the slowly lowering sun and his sunglasses glinted.

* * *

**(Confessional: Shino.)**

"An interesting situation," Shino said calmly, "unfortunately for a certain someone, I don't think I'm okay with the incoming results of this elimination ceremony. Fortunately for _another_ person, I think I know just what to do," his sunglasses glint.

**(End Confessional: Shino.)**

* * *

Temari was sitting the Dock, swinging her legs over the edge as she watched the sun begin to set. She heard footsteps clapping on the scruffy wood and turned to look at who was joining her. "Shino," she greeted.

"Temari," he nodded.

"What's up?"

Shino walked to the edge of the Dock, but didn't sit down. "You okay? Never seen you here before."

Temari sighed, "fine, I guess. Just a weird day. I'm dealing with situations I never thought I'd have to."

"I understand completely," Shino told her, "that's why I'm here, actually."

Temari raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I'm listening."

* * *

The nine Foxes were in food comas in the Mess Hall, having just finished stuffing their faces.

"So good," Naruto groaned, his face mashed against the table. "I don't even have the strength to lift my head."

"It's like a fairytale ending," TenTen said, a dreamy expression on her face as she massaged her swollen stomach. "All that crap we suffered through, just to get the win and the reward."

"Life is good," Karui agreed.

"Just don't hold that tent thing against me, guys." Ino pleaded. "It was a one time fluke, ok?"

"No grudges here," Kisame said, picking his teeth. "It's in the past and no consequences came of it."

"Yeah," Kurotsuchi agreed, "no harm, no foul!"

Hinata nodded and TenTen shot her at thumbs up, though Karui didn't look too convinced.

* * *

Dinner came and went for the Rhinos. It was a quiet affair, as all were significantly tired from their strenuous day. When called to the elimination area, they quietly filed down and took their seats on the stumps.

"Rhinos, I know you've had a long day so I'll keep this quick," Chris told them in a rare show of kindness. "You know the drill, since this is your third time in a row here. Now, the first marshmallow of the night goes to…Sakura."

Sakura smiled and went to claim her marshmallow.

"Temari, Shino, Deidera, Konan," Chris rang off, and the four teens happily joined Sakura by the safety of the fire pit. That left just Kiba, Karin, Shikamaru and Sasuke without a marshmallow.

"Two K's, two S's," Chris smirked. "The next marshmallow goes to…Sasuke."

Sasuke gave the host a confident nod and joined the rest of his team by the fire.

"Also safe…Shikamaru."

Shikamaru let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding in, quickly joining his team by the fire.

"Karin, Kiba, this is the final marshmallow of the night," Chris said dramatically. Unfortunately for him neither teen looked very nervous, something which annoyed the host. "Really? No tension at all for you guys?"

Kiba gave a sad little shrug and Karin rolled her eyes.

Chrs's annoyed look turned into an impish grin. "Well that might change when I give the marshmallow to….Kiba!"

"What?!" Both Kiba and Karin exclaimed.

"Surely you're mistaken!" Karin spluttered.

"Afraid not," Chris told her. Behind him, Chef droped the nerdy girls luggage on the ground.

Karin was infuriated, "this is unbelievable! How am I eliminated?! Kiba lost us the challenge!"

Kiba looked just as shocked as Karin did. The nerd whipped around to face her team. "Explain yourselves!" She demanded. "I demeaned an explanation!"

"Simple," Shikamaru drawled, "Kiba's staying, you're leaving."

"It seems the team values Kiba over you, Karin." Chris told her, loving every minute of this juicy drama. "Despite his catastrophic failure, they would still rather have him on the team than you. Harsh, eh?"

Karin stormed past her team and snagged her luggage.

"Any last words?" Chris asked sweetly.

"This whole experience was a waste of time." Karin snapped, "I can't believe you imbeciles eliminated me. What a joke." With her piece said, she turned tail and stormed down the Dock of Shame. She tossed her luggage into the Boat and climbed in after it. Chef gunned the gas and they sped off into the night.

"Man, she did _not_ take that well." Chris chuckled.

Kiba turned to his team, flabbergasted. "Guys…just…why? I mean, thank you. Thanks a lot, but why?"

His team exchanged glances.

"You're a good kid, Kiba. What happened was an unfortunate accident." Temari told him. "So the team decided to give you a second chance. Karin hadn't done much in four challenges, and kept to herself a lot."

"As I said on our first day," Shino added, "this game is as much about social skills as it is physical prowess."

"But don't think you'll get another one," Sasuke warned him. "Keep a better eye on that mutt."

"He's right," Temari agreed with Sasuke, "you're on thin ice, but you're still here. If you work hard, I'm sure you can prove your worth to the team."

Kiba nodded, his face determined. "I won't let you guys down!"

"I'm counting on it," Temari said haughtily. Done with her conversation with the dogboy, she turned to Chris. "Can we go now? I, for one, need some sleep."

"Yes, you all may go." Chris told them. "Sleep tight, cause tomorrow's challenge is gonna be…interesting."

With that ominous warning, the Rhinos dispersed and headed to their cabin for bedtime.

Now alone, Chris turned to the camera. "Well, that was quite the shocking elimination," he told the camera happily, "_Excellent!_ Will Kiba be able to regain the trust of his team? Are the Foxes destined to keep on winning now that they have three in a row? Who will be eliminated next? Find out next time, on Total! Drama! Island!"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals: **_

Deidera: Kiba messed up, but he's also really helped the team before this. Karin has been pretty invisible. Touch choice, hn...I guess I vote for Karin.

Karin: I vote for Kiba. Nothing personal.

Kiba: I know I'm gone, so theres no point in me voting. I guess I vote for Shikamaru, not that it matters...

Konan: I was approached by Temari about eliminating Karin instead of Kiba. Annoying as he might be, I think its the correct move. I vote for Karin.

Sakura: Temari and Shino think we should vote for Karin. That's fine by me, Kiba's nice and Akamaru is SO cute!

Sasuke: I can't say I agree with it, but the alliance thinks Kiba should stay. I'm no idiot, though. I won't go against my alliance. I vote for Karin.

Shikamaru: Sorry, Kiba, but you totally blew it for us.

Shino: Apologies in advance, Karin. For the record you did nothing to deserve this blindside. Unfortunately, Kiba is too popular and has already proven his worth. The same can not be said for you.

Temari: A good plan by Shino, and something that's fair to Kiba. He's not off the hook, but he has a second chance. I'd say he's earned it. Sorry Karin, but you've made no real effort to get to know any of us.

* * *

_**Votes:**_

Karin: 6 votes - (Deidera, Konan, Sakura, Sasuke, Shino, Temari).

Kiba: 2 votes - (Karin, Shikamaru).

Shikamaru: 1 vote - (Kiba).

* * *

_**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Deidera, Konan.**_

_**Fierce Foxes: Lee, Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**_

_**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya, Fu, Karin.**_

* * *

**_Last Words:_**

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee** \- "I tipped my hand to early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

**Tayuya** \- "Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also idiots! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

Fu - "It was awesome getting to know you guys! Kick some Fox butt!"

**Karin - **"This whole experience was a waste of time. I can't believe you imbeciles eliminated me. What a joke."

* * *

**Again. Apologies for the wait. I'm going to give a little info on the insight of Karin's elimination, if anyone was curious and/or upset by the circumstances.**

**Basically, as Shino pointed out in the first chapter, this is a social game just as much as it is a challenge game. You can kick all the ass you want in challenges, but if you suck and no one likes you, you're still gonna get booted. I'd argue it's BETTER to be useless in challenges but loved by your team because at least you're fun to be around. Kiba had good relations with important people on his team: Shino, Temari, and Konan. With Shino and Temari, they automatically get Sakura and Sasuke because of their allaince. Throw in Deidera, who still rememebrs how much Kiba liked his art, and you've got a serious case for keeping him despite his monumental blunder. Karin was too invisible. She barely spoke to her teammates, and had done nothing of real note in challenges. It was nothing personal against the girl, but I feel that this nerdy version of Karin just didn't have much of a story here. I didn't want to do a love triangle between her and Sakura for Sasuke, and...well, SOME people need to be early boots. Not everyone gets a developed story! Sorry to any Karin fans out there.**

**Well, let me know in a review if you enjoyed the chapter. I'll try to get the next chapter out much quicker than this.**

**Who do you guess will be eliminated next?**

**Ciao! **


	8. Phobia Factor!

**Alright, time for the next installment! **

**A quick note on Naruto's character! I got a couple of gripes about not liking the way he was so goofy, but that's just how I feel Naruto would be like if he hadn't endured hardships. In this AU, he's got a great family and has had an easy life. He's just a genuinely happy person. Don't get me wrong, as the game goes on we'll definitely see his more serious side, but for now he's just being happy-go-lucky! **

**After this comes the next Rest Day, but one person is going to get their butt booted before then! It's time for the fear challenge! **

* * *

The seventeen campers yawned and moaned as they filed into the rest hall. Most were still pretty wiped out from the strenuous events of the camping challenge, and were annoyed at having to be woken up early once again.

"At least we get to have actual breakfast today," Temari sighed, sliding in on the bench next to Shikamaru.

Shikamaru held up a spoonful of his white sludge, "lucky us," he remarked.

Termari smirked at that and scooted a little closer to Shikamaru so Shino could squeeze in next to her. Shikamaru jumped at the contact, looking at her incredulously.

"Well?" She said impatiently, "scoot over."

"Oh, yeah," Shikamaru's ears turned a little red as he scooted over.

The rest of the Rhinos sat on the benches and began to eat.

"Alright, team," Temari addressed everyone at her table, "we've lost three in a row, but hat changes today. We can't afford to lose another player, or we're going to start getting steamrolled by their numbers advantage."

"Temari's right," Kiba said enthusiastically. The boy was looking very chipper indeed, no doubt a result of his surprise forgiveness from his team the previous night. "Whatever the challenge is, we have to go in 110%."

"Haven't we been doing that every challenge?" Deidera asked, a little grumpy. "Surely none of us have been slacking."

"These past two losses have been different," Shikamaru pointed out, "Fu messed up in the talent contest, which we likely would've won. Yesterday was an unfortunate accident. This time, we're not gonna have any excuses or reasons for not winning."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him. "I didn't know you cared."

"Neither did I," Shikamaru admitted, "but seriously, let's win this stupid challenge today so we don't have to stress. At least for a little while."

Temari gave him an approving look. "That's what I like to hear," she grinned. "Go Rhinos!"

"Go Rhinos!" everyone echoed.

* * *

**(Confessional: Temari.)**

"It looks like Shikamaru might actually be coming around," Temari smirked, "It's about time. We're down a player and need everyone pitching in."

**(End Confessional: Temari.)**

* * *

The Foxes looked over when the Rhinos cheered their own name.

"Aw, look at 'em," Karui mocked, "trying to psyche themselves up. How _adorable_."

Kisame grinned. "Another win or two for us and we'll have completely broken their morale. They'll be crushed into the dirt."

"I think it's beautiful," Lee piped up, "they are no doubt outmatched by our wondrous team, but still try to have confidence!"

"I wonder what today's challenge is gonna be," Naruto wondered, scraping the bottom of his bowl with his spoon.

"Who knows," Ino sighed, "they've all been so completely different from each other that it's impossible to predict!"

"That's not totally true," Itachi said, idly drumming his fingers on the table. "They all seem to be loosely related to normal summer camp activities."

Karui scoffed, tossing her fiery mane over her shoulder, "I dunno what kinda summer camps _you_ went to as a kid, hot stuff, but jumping off of cliffs into shark-infested waters _ain't_ the norm."

A dry smirk creeped across the elder Uchiah's face, "I see your point," he admitted.

"A-heh-heh-hem!" Came a voice from the entrance. The campers turned to see a grinning Chris standing at the threshold, hands held behind his back. "Good morning, campers. Sleep well after your tough day yesterday?"

The campers all gave various unenthusiastic responses.

"Good, good," Chris said, moving things along real quick, "now, it's time for your next challenge," he removed his hands from behind his back and gave Kurotsuchi some finger guns. "Yo, Kurotsuchi!"

The tomboy raised an eyebrow.

"Let's say we hit the beach," Chris offered, confusing the campers, "you, me, a few _tons_ of sand?"

Kurotsuchi didn't understand at first. "What? I don't…" she trailed off, suddenly going pale.

"What? What is it?" Hintata asked her friend, concerned.

"No," Kurotsuchi whispered, "he can't mean…"

"Oh, I mean…" Chris agreed. "Today you campers will be facing your deepest, darkest fears!"

Gasps rang throughout the group. Nervous whispers began flying across the Mess Hall. How did he know? Was he bluffing? Those shoes totally didn't go with those pants!

Shikamaru was the first to figure it out, and he face-flopped onto the table, startling his teammates.

"The beach party fire," he grumbled, just loud enough so that everyone could hear him. "We shared our fears, they must've been listening in."

"How rude!" Deidera exclaimed. "That's personal details!"

"Its Reality TV," Sasuke deadpanned, "we're _always_ on camera."

"Sasuke's right," Chris told the teens. "You all will have to face your fears today. Conquer them, and you'll score your team a point. Fail, and face the wrath of your teammates. Now, we're going to be going one by one. You're welcome to come along and support your team, if possible. First up, we're bringing Kurotsuchi down to the beach!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

Naruto shot the camera a cocky look. "Yeah, my worst fear might be slasher film villains, but this challenge is gonna be a breeze! One, it's broad daylight. Two, I know it's coming. Three…" he frowned, "okay, there isn't really a third reason...but still!"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.) **

* * *

The campers all had followed Kurotsuchi and Chris down to the beach. A pit had already been dug out, and a clear plastic coffin lay open, ready for the poor Fox.

Kurotsuchi was an absolute mess. Sweat dripped down her neck and she was trembling uncontrollably.

"You just have to make it five minutes. We'll be right here to dig you out the moment time is up." Chris told her. "The choice is yours. Will you do it?"

The tomboy took a shaky step back. "I…I can't do it," she finally managed to get out. "I'm sorry, team…I just can't."

The Foxes all looked disappointed, but none showed it verbally.

Chris was not so kind. "Really? I spent all that time digging it for nothing?! What a waste!"

Kisame scoffed. "Please, like _you_ actually dug it."

"I might've forced Kakashi and Obito to do it," Chris admitted with an impish grin. "anyways…the first challenge ends in failure. Shikamaru, Sakura, you're up!"

The two aforementioned teens glanced at each other, confused. "Both of us?" Sakura asked, "at the same time?"

The rumble of a motor could be heard, and the contestants turned to see a crappy looking yellow biplane rumbling towards them on its shaky wheels. The plane had dings and dents in it and thick black smoke was coming out of the engine. The windshield was cracked and there was something that looked suspiciously liked duct tape wrapped around one of the wings. Perhaps worst of all, however, was the pilot. Chef stuck his head out the window with a maniacal grin, waving at the group as he slowly spluttered towards them.

"You guys have to go on a short little trip with Chef." Chris told them. "Flying _and_ heights, haha, it's two for the price of one!"

"No way," Sakura said instantly, "that thing is a _death-trap_. It won't even get off the ground!"

"It's completely safe!" Chef barked from the drivers seat. "You think I'd go up in it if I didn't trust it? It's my ass on the line too!"

"Just to be completely safe, you guys have parachutes," Chris told Sakura and Shikamaru. "You'll find them in the plane."

"Nope," Sakura repeated, "sorry, but I'm not risking it."

Shikamaru was about to decline as well, but chanced a glance at the rest of his team. A certain blonde was giving Shikamaru a curious look with those pesky green-blue eyes, and he found himself stumbling over his refusal.

"Welp, we've got one chicken," Chris said, "Shikamaru, what'll it be?"

"I'll…" Shikamaru continued to weigh his options, "ugh…what a drag. Fine, I'll do it."

Kiba clapped his hands. "That's what I'm talking about! Let's go, Shikamaru!"

"You'll be fine, hn! Just make sure you put on a parachute!" Deidera advised him.

"What great advice," Shikamaru said sarcastically as he clambered into the back of the plane. "Let's get this over with."

"Slide the damn door shut and I will!" Chef screamed at him.

Shikamaru shut the door and Chef started the engine in earnest. The campers backed off as the plane took to the skies.

"Alright, Shikamaru scores the first point of the challenge!" Chris exclaimed. "Let's get moving, we've got more fears to face!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Sakura.)**

Sakura shook her head. "I don't even care that I looked like a wimp. That plane was so sketchy, you have no idea! I wouldn't change a thing. I just wish Shikamaru had wimped out too, so I wouldn't be the only one that did…"

**(End Confessional: Sakura.)**

* * *

The campers now stood in a secluded part of the woods. Chris had just called TenTen forward from the group. About fifteen yards away, there was a nasty looking hive hanging from the lower trunk of an oak tree. Chris was wearing a bee keeper suit, and it seemed he had a spare.

"Alright, TenTen. Your challenge is to go smash that huge wasp nest over there," Chris told her. At her shocked look, he quickly added, "you'll have a suit too."

That calmed TenTen down significantly. "Fine," She agreed, "let's get it over with."

The camera cut to show TenTen, now clad in a standard white beekeeper outfit, slowly approaching the wasp nest. The focus zoomed in on the wasp an ominous tune played over the buzzing of the devil bugs. "Easy, TenTen," she told herself calmly, "you're in a suit. They can't hurt you." Emboldened by her own words, she ran the last few yards and did a clean karate punch into the wasp nest. The paper-like substance blew apart, revealing dozens and dozens of swarming wasps. TenTen let out a shriek as the wasps swarmed, turning and booking it.

"Fortunately for us, TenTen runs _away_ from us," Chris narrated, amused as he watched the screaming black belt disappear from view. "The Foxes get their first point." He turned to the group and held out a roll of duct tape. "Deidera, you're up next."

The artist gulped, stepping to the front of the group. "I know what's coming," he said gravely, "and I accept, hn."

Chris pulled a strap of duct tape from the roll with a grin. "Alrgihty, then."

The camera flashed forward to show Deidera completely bound from shoulder to belly button in duct tape. His arms were completely pinned down, and the poor boy was already sweating. "H-how long do I have to stay like this?" He asked nervously.

"Four hours," Chris told him. "Now, we're not legally allowed to restrain you like this against your will so you can ask to be cut free and we will oblige. _But_ you'll forfeit the point. Capisce?"

Deidera nodded. "Very well."

"Alright, now if you'll follow me to the auditorium."

* * *

**(Confessional: Deidera.) **

Deidera rustled uncomfortably in his duct-tape prison. "This is awful," Deidera complained, "I feel like my arms on fire! They need to be free, moving, _creating_!" He furiously wiggled around and lost his balance, tipping over sideways onto the floor. "Gahhhh! Somebody help! I'm stuck!"

**(End Confessional: Deidera.)**

* * *

"Alright, first up at the auditorium, we have Karui," Chris said, standing up on the auditorium with the dark skinned woman. In front of them was a glass box. "In this box is a tarantula, Karui. All you have to do is hold it for five seconds and you get the point."

Karui shivered, instantly scooting away from the box. "A _tarantula_?! Aren't they like, super deadly?!"

"It's actually a misconception," Shino said calmly, "they're actually quite docile. I'd also be surprised if Chris chose a dangerously venomous one."

"Right you are, Shino. Gerty here has practically zero venom and comes from a wildlife center so she's used to people. Minimal chance of being attacked as long as you don't provoke her."

"C'mon!" Kisame called to her, "do it Karui. You're not gonna let some bug get the better of you, are you?"

Karui's face hardened. "No way!" She spat, striding forward, "let me at this thing!" She bent down and yanked the roof of the glass box. Before she could lose her nerve, she lowered her hand into the box. The fuzzy spider slowly took an interest in her hand, and after a few seconds began to climb up her fingers. "Eeeeugh," she whisper-screamed, raising her hand out of the box and holding the spider as far away from her body as she possibly could.

"One," Chris counted, "two, three, four…five! Challenge complete, Karui!"

"Euugaughaugh!" Karui began to shriek, shaking her arm wildly, "get it off! Get it off! GET IT OFF!"

Shino rushed onto the stage, stabilizing Karui's hand before the poor spider was flung away. He gently scooped the spider off her hand and held it in both of his own. "Hello there, little one," he said warmly, a strange contrast to his normal cool voice, "are you okay?"

"He's holding it close to his face!" Ino squealed, turning away and covering her eyes, "Ew! Ew! Ewww!"

Even Konan looked a little pale, "that's hardcore," she admitted.

"Alright Shino, you're scaring everyone," Chris said, also looking a little uncomfortable, "put Gerty back in her box."

Shino obliged, and Karui returned to her team, shaking. She was promptly clapped on the shoulder by Kisame.

"Good work," the large boy told her seriously, "I know that wasn't easy for you."

Ino wrapped Karui in a hug, any potential beef between them momentarily forgotten in the face of the large, scary bug. "You're so strong!" The model squealed, "I could never! "

Karui could only let out a shaky laugh as she turned the hug.

"We've got a bunch more challenges here, so get comfy," Chris advised the teens. "Everyone except for Sasuke, that is. Why don't you join me on stage?"

Sasuke sighed loudly, but disengaged himself from his team to join the host. The glass box had disappeared, replaced by a wooden chair.

"All you have to do is sit in the chair while a special friend gives you a present!" Chris told him, "and I'll bet you can guess who this special friend is."

"I could venture a guess," Sasuke grumbled.

"Huh-huh-ha!" Came a creepy voice from behind the curtain. Sasuke paled, and Itachi couldn't help the chuckle that came from his mouth.

TenTen noticed and shot him a wry smile. "I take it theres some hilarious story from when you two were kids that explains why he's afraid of clowns?"

"Yes," Itachi admitted, "but I love my brother too much to ever share the details of what happened. No human should have to endure that much embarrassment."

"Now you've just got me curious," TenTen chuckled. She suddenly felt two hands grip her shoulders, and turned around to see Kisame all but cowering behind her. She let out another laugh. "That's right! You hate clowns too!"

"Almost as much as fire," Kisame agreed uneasily, casually using TenTen as a shield. "Just…karate chop him or something if he attacks me."

"He's a clown, not a killer clown," TenTen told him, "just relax, why don't you?"

The grip on her shoulders tightened, "that's what they want you to think," he warned.

Back on stage, the clown had finally revealed himself. He wasn't a particularly scary clown, just the kind of ordinary one you'd see at a small childs birthday. Big red shoes, big red noes, face paint and a funny green afro. He walked towards Sasuke with exaggerated steps, and the shoes squeaked.

"Heya there, champ!" The clown said, his goofy voice making Sasuke wince. "I've been told to give you a present!"

"Is it murder?" Sasuke asked warily, looking ready to bolt from his chair.

"Why no, silly!" The clown chuckled. He pulled out a flaccid piece of rubber. "It's this!"

"A condom?"

The clown shook his head, "get your mind out of the gutter, sonny! I'm gonna make you a balloon animal! Now, tell me, what's your favorite animal?"

"I…guess I like cats," the boy said reluctantly.

"Cats! Good choice." He put the balloon to his lips and began to inflate it. After a couple of seconds, it was a long tube. The clown wiggled it around, beginning to twist it into a cat. As each second passed, Sasuke looked more and more ready to bolt from his chair, but his bottom remained in the chair. After another thirty seconds, the balloon cat was complete. "Here ya go, slugger," the clown beamed, handing it to Sasuke.

Sasuke swiped it from him. "Thanks," he said stiffly, "now go away."

"And Sasuke completes his challenge!" Chris announced to the cheers of the Rhinos. "I'm honestly surprised," he told the angry boy as the clown left the stage, "I thought you were gonna bail like five different times."

Sasuke threw the balloon cat on the ground, stomping on it with a loud _pop_!

"Ok," Chris scanned the group as Sasuke rejoined them, "let's have…"

A shadow rushed past Chris, heading straight for Sasuke. It was Kakashi, wielding a grey baseball bat.

"Sasuke!" Sakura shrieked, "look out!"

Sasuke could only turn and gawp as Kakashi closed the distance, bringing the baseball bat up over his head. He swung it down, but stopped when an arm caught his wrist. Before Kakashi knew it, he had a palm under his chin and a leg behind his own, and he felt himself being hip-thrown over the unknown interceptor. The counselor was quick, and managed to turn his fall into a backflip and land on his feet, but he now found himself without the bat. Said baseball bat was now in the hands of a calm and collected Itachi, who was tapping the tip against his hand.

The group was silent, trying to comprehend the quick sequence of events that just happened.

"What just happened?" Kiba asked.

"Itachi just got a point for his team, that's what." Chris announced. "Itachi hates seeing his loved ones in danger, so we had Kakashi stage a sneak attack on Sasuke!"

Sasuke looked embarrassed, but most of his teammates looked angry.

"By bashing his brains in with a baseball bat?!" Temari yelled, "what if no one had stopped him?!"

"It's fine," Itachi said, drawing the others attention to him, "this bat is made of styrofoam." He squeezed the bat and it compressed, "see?"

Temari relaxed.

"Safe to say you passed the test," Chris said, "nice reaction time and hip-throw, my man."

Itachi said nothing and tossed the bat back to Kakashi, who was eyeing the elder brother with approval. "You're good."

Itachi nodded, "so are you."

"Eight years Akido." Kakashi explained.

"Five years traditional Okinawan Ju-Jitsu," Itachi replied.

"Alright, let's keep it moving!" Chris announced.

A montage of the challenges began to play, showing some of the campers trying to face their fears.

First up was Naruto, who walked into the bathroom to take a leak. He entered a stall and closed it behind him. Little did he know, a large man with a hockey mask and a chainsaw entered in after him, opting to stand right outside his stall door. As Naruto finished up and flushed, the big man got ready to rev his chainsaw. Naruto opened the door as the big man screamed and whirred the chainsaw to life. Naruto, while initially startled and surprised, quickly let out a grin and proceed to scold the man on why he wasn't scary because he already knew he was coming. He had passed his test.

Hinata screamed and ran as a mini-tornado chased after her. Chris was controlling the mini tornado from what looked like a gamepad in his hands. All Hinata had to do was accept and endure the tiny little storm, but the girl couldn't bring herself to conquer her fear, even on such a small scale.

Konan stood on the stage at the auditorium, a dull expression on her face. Suddenly, a bunch of spotlights turned on, engulfing the girl in bright white light. The confused goth found herself surrounded on all sides by a bunch of pretty young women in bright pink tutus. They began to dance their dance as Konan looked increasingly uncomfortable. Chris told her all she had to do was make it through one song, but after ninety seconds she became too unnerved and ran off the stage.

Ino was next on stage with Chris. Chris looked at her and held up an electric razor, pointing to model's head of beautiful blonde hair. Ino responded by screaming and running off the stage. Her teammates couldn't really blame her, as getting a horrible haircut was bad for anyone.

Kiba stood in a pen with a large lizard. Akamaru was safe in the arms of Konan. The boy was initially scared, but after remembering how close he was to being eliminated the previous challenge, he swallowed his fear and bent down to sit next to the lizard. The curious lizard crawled over to the boy, and Kiba reached out a tentative hand. It's tongue darted out and struck his hand, and Kiba realized that the lizard wasn't that bad. He actually pet the scaly beast before getting his point, and his team cheered him on.

"Alright!" Chris clapped his hands as Kiba left the pen. Shikamaru had long since landed and joined the group. "Fifteen minutes left for Diedera, and we've got two more people per team!"

Lee, Kisame, Temari and Shino all exchanged a nervous look.

"Kisame, you're up first," Chris said. He gestured to the ground in front of him. Nothing looked too odd about it, except for a large red X that had been spray-painted into the grass. Next to the X was a large bucket of water.

"Stand on the X, if you will," Chris told Kisame.

"I will when you tell me what I'll be doing first," Kisame crossed his arms.

Chris held up a box of matches. "You'll stand on that X and I'll lite the lighter gel that has been placed in a wide circle around you. You'll be more than safe, but you'll be trapped. You have to stay in the circle for one minute to get the point. If you chicken out, that bucket of water can be used to extinguish the fire, allowing for easy escape."

Kisame didn't look particularly confident, but went to stand on the X all the same.

Chris struck the match and dropped it onto the grass. Instantly, a wall of flame leapt up, tracing its path until it came full circle to engulf itself around Kisame.

To say the boy took it badly would be an understatement. The fire had barely completed the circle before Kisame grabbed the bucket and overturned it on a section of it, sizzling it out. Kisame quickly extricated himself out and ran twenty yards away, shaking his head as he did.

"I can't," He said solemnly. "Nope. I thought I could, but I can't."

The Foxes sighed.

Chris whipped out a bottle of red liquid. "Shino, you're up, man!"

Shino let out a dark sigh, "I figured," he grumbled. "Is it pigs?"

Chris gave the bottle a little shake, "yup, fresh pigs blood!"

"Ew!" Ino squeaked, "don't tell me he has to drink that?"

"Haha! No, that would be _awesome_, though," Chris conceded, "he just has to wash his hands with it."

Shino stepped forward, "I will be useful to my team," he vowed, holding his hands out, "you may began."

Chris obliged, and uncapped the bottle. He tipped it over the boy's hands and began to pour out the pig blood onto Shino's hands. The bugboy noticeably shivered on first contact, but kept his nerve until the bottle was empty.

"Well done," Chris told him, "you may go wash your hands with water now."

Shino all but ran to clean his hands.

"Temari, your challenge is to be submerged in a crowd of panicking people," Chris told her, "you'll have an airhorn to blow if you can't hack it, and the crowd will instantly disperse. You need to last five minutes in the crowd."

Temari looked determined as hell. Her fists were balled and her head was tilted upward in a confident glare. "Bring it!"

Chris tossed her an airhorn and clapped his hands, and instantly fifty interns and crewman surrounded the defacto leader of the Rhinos. They began to yell and scream, pushing and shoving one another and Temari. Her eyes went wide as someone slammed into her, knocking her into another person who slammed her back the way she came. She grew short of breath as she continued to get knocked around, and began to fumble for the airhorn. Just as she was about to press it, a hand caught hers, preventing her from blowing it. Alarmed, she looked at the culprit to see a bored Shikamaru looking at her.

He mouthed something, but the noise of the panicked crowd was too loud and she couldn't make it out. His presence somehow calmed her, though. She tired to yell something at him but he just rolled his eyes and pointed to his ears. _It's loud_.

She glared at him, mometntarily forgetting the commotion around her, and he smirked. He withdrew his hand from her wrist, but someone bumped into the girl, sending her away from Shikamaru. Her hand dashed out and grabbed his wrist this time, and she didn't let go. She used him as her rock, clinging to his arm despite all the clattering about that was happening, and before she knew it everything stopped at once and her team was cheering.

"Wow, that was hardcore, Temari!" Kiba cheered.

"Well done," Konan added.

"And with a little help from Shikamaru, Temari pulls through," Chris narrated. "Last but not least, we have Lee!"

Lee bounded forward, though he looked a little nervous. "I am ready!"

Suddenly, an old woman appeared from behind Chris. And she as _old_ old. She even had that great-grandma smell.

"Lee, you challenge is to not run away while Gam-Gams here smooches you on the cheek," Chris told him.

Lee gulped as the old bitty slowly shambled towards him. "C'mere, sonny," she said in a trembling voice, "you're so big and handsome!"

For every shuffle she took, Lee took a step back.

"C'mon, dude! Get your head in the game!" Karui yelled in encouragement, "she's the most harmless thing ever! Just take the smooch!"

But her words fell on deaf ears. Lee continued to shuffle back as she lady shuffled forwards.

"Uh…yeah, I don't think we're getting anywhere with this," Chris lamented. The watch on his wrist beeped. "And Deidera completes his challenge. That means, in a shocking steamroll, the Rhinos win with a score of 6-4, despite being a person down!"

The Rhinos cheered, grateful to have finally broken their losing streak.

"How could we let the victory slip!" TenTen sighed, shooting a disappointed look at her teammates.

"Foxes, it's back to the elimination area with you," Chris told them, beginning to walk off screen as another ominous tune began to play, "I'll see you tonight."

* * *

**(Confessional: Itachi.)**

Itachi sighed, "it seems our team jinxed itself in their confidence this morning. It is unfortunate, as I believe that despite the clashing personalities we all work pretty well together."

**(End Confessional: Itachi.)**

* * *

The Foxes found themselves in their cabin, all lounging in the boys side. Kisame, Itachi, Lee and Naruto were on their own bunks. TenTen and Hinata sat next to Kisame and Naruto respectively, while Ino lounged on Bee's empty bed and Kurotsuchi and Karui shared Sai's old bed.

"So, you're probably wondering why I've gathered you all here," TenTen said, looking over at the team "I think it's time we had a proper discussion about who should be eliminated, with the team as a whole."

The Foxes all looked uncomfortable by this, but no one objected.

"Fine by me," Kisame said, shrugging, "where do we start, though?"

"Um," Hinata rose her hand, to the surprise of her teammates, "well…I think that anyone that was able to complete their fear facing shouldn't be eliminated. It was the fault of us that failed the challenges that we lost."

Karui, one of the few on the team to actually face her fear, quickly nodded. "Yeah, I like that idea a lot."

"Fine by me!" TenTen said, "anyone have any objections?"

No one did, even the ones who had failed.

"Okay, so that's Itachi, Karui, TenTen, and Naruto," Ino counted off on her fingers, "which leaves me, Kisame, Kurotsuchi, Hinata, and Lee."

"I think it should be Kisame," Naruto spoke up, his tone a little heated as he glared at the jock.

"Me?" Kisame raised an eyebrow, "may I inquire your reasoning?"

"Yeah, you're a scheming jerk that kicked Bee off!" Naruto exclaimed. "You got mad at Bee and got everyone to vote him off because he 'schemed too early' right?" He used exaggerated air quotes on 'schemed too early', "But wasn't that exactly what _you_ did by voting him off?"

Kisame barked out a laugh, "a surprisingly logical argument, my little friend. Perhaps theres hope for you yet."

"He's got a point, though," Kurotsuchi admitted, "we haven't lost since Bee got booted, so we don't know what else he's capable of."

"Friends," Kisame implored, "I only acted because of Bee's target," he gestured to Itachi, "I merely felt that Itachi did not deserve to go home during the Awakeathon, so I acted to try and save someone I consider a friend. Is that really so wrong?"

Silence settled over the Foxes, though some members didn't look convinced. Eventually Karui decided to speak up. "Well, I'll be honest, guys. I think Lee should get eliminated."

Lee scoffed and crossed his arms, "of _course_ you do! You've had it out for me since day one!"

"Ever since I saw the speedo," Karui admitted without a hint of shame. "Look, where I come from people shoot straight. You're just too much, Lee. I don't like you and you honestly haven't been super helpful to the team." Ignoring Lee's spluttering, she continued by jerking her thumb at Naruto, who was glaring at her, "I don't like Naruto either, but at least he won us the dodgeball challenge and faced his fear today. I just call it like I see it. Out of everyone here that didn't face their fear, the only people that should be considered are you and Ino."

"Me?" Ion yelped, "why me?!"

"Because you've been inconsistent," Karui explained haughtily, "and don't get me started on that tent mishap two nights ago."

"I don't want to vote for Ino," Kurotsuchi told Karui, "she's my friend."

"Y-yeah! Mine too!" Hintata said shyly.

TenTen nodded her head. "This is good, guys. It's an ugly conversation, but it'll help team communication and performance if we're all on the same page after the voting."

"Vote for Kisame, then," Lee told his team, "let me show you how useful I can be in our next challenge!"

"Or vote for Lee," Karui added, "because he's annoying."

"I have had it with you!" Lee snapped, standing from his bed and stomping over to Karui. The fiesty black girl glared up at him, unafraid. "Shut up, okay! Everyone is tired of hearing you whine! Maybe we should vote for _you _tonight!"

"Good plan," Karui mocked, "but we already established people that completed their fear shouldn't be up for elimination."

"Plans change," Lee snarled, looking rather scary. With that said, he turned on his heel and exited the cabin, slamming the door in the process.

"Geez, where's that cutthroat energy during challenges?" Ino asked awkwardly.

"Well, this was fun and all," Kurotsuchi said, edging towards the door, "but yeah…I'm gonna go."

"Me too," Naruto said with a final sour look at Kisame. Hinata followed the two out.

"Good call, TenTen," Karui said sarcastically, "you really brought the team together." She took her leave too.

Ino gave a distraught looking TenTen a comforting squeeze on the shoulder as she left.

Just Itachi, Kisame and TenTen remained in the cabin.

"Oh no, what I have done?" TenTen said miserably, planting her face in her hands. Her twin buns bobbed in exaggerated sadness.

Kisame wrapped an arm around the girl and gave her a brief one-armed squeeze. "Don't fret it, Buns," he told her, "your heart was in the right place. The same can not be said for our more idiotic teammates." He withdrew his arm and turned to Itachi, who had remained silent during the conversation. "What do you think, Itachi?"

"I think," Itachi said cryptically, "that one of our teammates has overstayed their welcome."

Kisame gave him a dark grin, "I couldn't agree more."

* * *

Temari found herself on the Dock of Shame again, feet dangling over the side as she watched the sunset. Just like the previous night, she heard footsteps plodding down the dock towards her. However, she could tell by the gait just who it was, and said nothing as Shikamaru sat down next to her.

"Yo," he greeted.

She nodded at him in response.

Shikamaru took it a step further by changing from a sitting position to lying on his back, arms behind his head. He let out a satisfied sigh as he stared up at the clouds. At Temari's confused looked, he began to explain, "Never been one for sunsets much, I'm more of a cloud watching kind of guy."

Temari nodded, satisfied by the explanation, and returned her gaze to the setting sun. "Thanks for today," she told him, "I don't know if I could've made it without help."

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, "wow. That must've been hard for you to say."

"Don't make me hit you," Temari warned.

"I'm just joking," Shikamaru amended quickly, "besides, didn't you boot Tayuya for just that? Hypocrite much?"

Temari gave him a light punch on the outside of his thigh, making him gasp and then chuckle. "You've made your point," he conceded, sitting up. "You just looked like you needed a helping hand, that's why I slipped in. I figured it's the least I could've done considering I owe you for still being here."

Temari scoffed. "Are you seriously back on that? I didn't do anything. If anything, you should thank Tayuya for hitting you. That's the only reason you're still here." The two were quiet for a second, "though I am glad you're still here," she finally admitted. "You've turned your attitude around nicely. I knew you could do it."

"You did seem to have some bizarre faith in me, you weirdo," Shikamaru agreed, and Temari hit him lightly again, this time on the shoulder.

"You're an idiot," she told him, hiding her smile as she stood up. "Now come on," she offered him her hand, "let's go get some dinner.

Shikamaru accepted the hand and dusted himself off. "Who knew Docks could be so dirty?"

Temari let out a snort, turning on her heel an heading back towards camp, "_everything_ on this island is dirty."

* * *

Dinner came and went without much fuss. The Rhinos were relaxing and enjoying their success, talking easily about their hobbies and current events. The Foxes table was a much different story, and there was a stony silence as they consumed their meal. Eventually, dinner was over and the Foxes were told to report down to the elimination are to vote off one of their own. They found themselves surrounded by darkness as they sat on the stumps, looking worriedly at the host who stood behind his signature oil barrel.

"Well, well, well, it's been a while, Foxes," Chris sighed, twirling the tray on his hand like it was a basketball, "it's time to kick one of your sorry butts off the island. Let's get this show started. The first marshmallow of the night goes to…TenTen."

TenTen smiled and headed up to the fire to toast her marshmallow.

"Itachi and Naruto, you two are safe as well," Chris told the boys. Naruto pumped his fist, but Itachi only nodded solemnly. "Kurotsuchi and Ino, no votes for you guys either!"

The two girls sighed in relief, joining the rest of the team at the fire.

Hinata, Karui, Lee and Kisame all stared at the three remaining marshmallows.

"The next name I'm going to call is…Hinata."

Hinata smiled, scurrying over to her team.

"Kisame, Lee, Karui, there's only two marshmallows left," Chris told the three dramatically, "Kisame and Lee, you both failed in the challenge today and have beef with other members of your team. Karui, you completed the challenge but have been ticking everyone off with your whining. The next marshmallow goes to…

…

…

…

…

…

Kisame."

Kisame let out a long exhale, all but running to grab his marshmallow and join his team. TenTen pat his back and Kisame and Itachi exchanged a nod.

"Lee, Karui, this is it. One of you is safe, one of you goes. Anyone feeling particularly confident?" Chris asked the two.

"I am!" Both Karui and Lee said at the same time. The two turned to glare at each other, "no, I am! Stop that!"

"Haha, awesome," Chris chuckled, "unfortunately for one of you, your team has finally run out of patience with you. The person that gets the final marshmallow tonight is…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

Karui!"

Lee gasped as Karui triumphantly ran over to collect the final marshmallow. "No way!" The boy exclaimed, looking crestfallen, "Why won't you guys let me prove myself!"

"We've waited long enough," Itachi said simply, surprising his team with his blunt words, "no hard feelings," he added.

Lee's lip trembled as he was brought his luggage. Naruto approached his bud and wrapped him in a hug. There were no tears from the blond, just determination. "I'll win for you," he whispered into Lee's ear, "for you and Bee!"

Lee nodded as the two separated and wiped at his eyes messily. "Well, you all have made your decision."

"Any last words before you go, Lee?" Chris asked him.

Lee nodded, "While I may not agree with your decision, I respect it. It was an honor to play with you all!"

The team gave him varying degrees of a response, with some like Naruto and Hintata waving fondly after him. Others, like Karui and Kisame, showed no signs that they had heard the boy. Lee strolled down the dock and boarded. With one final wave, the boat sped off into the night.

"Foxes, the rest of you are safe," Chris told them solemnly. "You may go."

The Foxes nodded and left the area. Now alone, Chris turned to the camera. "Well, another camper bites the proverbial dust! Is it the Rhinos turn to start a winning streak, or will the Foxes bounce back better than ever? What _other _terrifying challenges do we have in store? Find out next time on Total! Drama! Island!"

/

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

Naruto glared at the camera, the most fierce expression seen yet on his normally goofy face. "Y'know what? I've just about had it with this team," he confessed, "I was just trying to have fun and play the game the way I wanted to, y'know? Lee and Bee were the same. But the others, Karui and Kisame and those other jerks, the bullied them off the island!" His face falls, "now its just me…well if they want me to take it seriously, consider it done! They better be careful what they wish for, believe it!"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

**/**

***static***

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals:**_

Hinata: I...I vote for Karui. She's not very nice at all.

Ino: This is a tough one, but I have to vote for Lee. Kisame is too much of a hunk and Karui's been too useful in challenges.

Itachi: Lee has run out of chances. I keep waiting for him to prove me wrong like Naruto has, but he continues to disappoint.

Karui: It's time for bowl-cut to hit the road. See ya later!

Kisame: It seems it's time for Lee to go. I won't miss him at all, and it'll be nice not to be woken by him every damned morning.

Kurotsuchi: I guess I vote for Kisame. Naruto and Lee made some really good points.

Lee: Karui, I've had it with your negative attitude! You are a hinderance to the team!

Naruto: I vote for Karui! She's a total jerk!

TenTen: Sorry, Lee. I know you're a good kid, but it's just not working out on this team for you.

* * *

_**Votes: **_

Lee: 5 votes - (Ino, Itachi, Karui, Kisame, TenTen).

Karui: 3 votes - (Hinata, Lee, Naruto).

Kisame: 1 vote - (Kurotsuchi).

* * *

**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Deidera, Konan.**

**Fierce Foxes: Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**

**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya, Fu, Karin, Lee.**

* * *

_**Last Words:**_

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee** \- "I tipped my hand too early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

**Tayuya** \- "Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also idiots! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

**Fu** \- "It was awesome getting to know you guys! Kick some Fox butt!"

**Karin** \- "This whole experience was a waste of time. I can't believe you imbeciles eliminated me. What a joke."

**Lee - **"While I may not agree with your decision, I respect it. It was an honor to play with you all!"

* * *

**And Lee takes the walk! Arguably the first "major" canon character kicked off. I love Lee, but in a normal AU setting his exuberance would just be too much for 'normal' teens. He did his best, but couldn't convince his team that he was worth keeping around. At the very least, he was a catalyst for Naruto to start taking things more seriously, since he's now basically alone on his team (and doesn't yet know of Hinata's affections towards him).**

**Next chapter is the second rest day, so no elimination then. Expect development on several couples, though! It'll be juicy, I promise!**

**Until next time, don't forget to review, follow, and favorite! Who would you guess will be eliminated next?**

**Ciao!**


	9. Maxing the Relaxing!

**Okay, time for another rest day. This one will be by far the shortest one because of just where the story and characters are at during the game right now. But it'll still be fluffy and more laid back than the usual competition, so I hope you guys enjoy it! Also, expect some couple development! **

* * *

The day after Lee's elimination was a Rest Day, and the campers were taking full advantage of the privileges given to them by not having to compete. They had all slept in pretty late, and some hadn't even made their way into the Mess Hall until close to noon. Everyone was mostly doing their own thing, hanging in groups of two or three or just by themselves, and it actually felt like they were just relaxing at a summer camp for once.

However for some, theres was business to attend to.

Sakura peeked around the corner of the Mess Hall. Currently, she, Hinata, and Into were hiding around the back by the dumpsters.

"Coast clear?" Ino whispered.

Sakura nodded, turning back to the other two girls.

"Uh…why exactly are we back here?" Hintata asked nervously, "it stinks back here…"

"I need a progress report, that's why!" Sakura told the two girls. "How's your progress going with Naruto?"

Hinata groaned and smacked her face. "Is that really what this is about?" She mumbled, embarrassed.

Ino ignored her teammate, "it's been going great," she said to Sakura, "I got them snuggling during the camping challenge."

Sakura clapped her hands together excitedly, "ooh, awesome! Is he clueing in at all, or still oblivious?"

"I think he's still pretty oblivious," Ino lamented, shaking her head sadly, "though…he might clue in if Hinata had the guts to actually make a move."

"She's so shy, it's ridiculous!" Sakura agreed, "she could have Naruto curled around her finger if she wanted!"

"Hey!" Hintata exclaimed, "I'm standing right here!"

The two girls paused, turning to grin sheepishly at the flustered girl.

"Sorry, sorry," Sakura giggled, "I just want to see you two happy! Bringing people together is one of life's few true pleasures."

They were interrupted when someone peeked their head around the corner of the Mess Hall. "Now, what do we have here?" Kakashi sighed.

The three were initially startled at the interruption, but relaxed slightly when they saw it was just a camp counselor.

"Why do you even care?" Sakura asked, rather rudely. Her tone made Hinata flinch, and the shy girl quickly tugged on Sakura's sleeve.

"Why are you being so rude to him?" She whispered. "He's a counselor!"

"Ha! Some counselor," Sakura shrugged Hintata off and pointed two fingers at Kakashi in the typical 'I'm watching you' gesture. "He hates all of us."

Kakashi shrugged, "Not all, just most," he defended himself, "what are you guys doing back here?"

The three girls glanced between each other. "Nothing," Ino said shiftily, "just chatting." It was her turn to stare suspiciously at the older man, "what are _you_ doing back here?"

"I heard some not-so-quiet voices and got interested, obviously," Kakashi said with a roll of his eyes, "whatever, if you brats wanna whisper and giggle, that's fine." He turned to leave. As he was walking away, something fell out of his back pocket and onto the ground. He didn't notice, and Ino quickly jogged over and picked it up.

"Hey, you dropped your copy of…" she lowered her eyes to read the title, and her expression quickly grew surprised, "Icha Icha Paradise?"

Sakura gapsed, "I love Icha Icha Paradise!"

Meanwhile, Kakashi had froze in his tracks. The girls couldn't read his face since his back was to them, but the back of his neck and ears were bright red.

"Kakashi, I didn't take you for the romantic type," Sakura teased, walking up to Ino and studying the book in her hands. "Who would've thought?"

Mortified, Kakashi turned around and shamefully walked towards the girls. He held his hand out for his book, and Ino happily placed it in his hands. "Don't tell anyone about this," He warned them, though it sounded lame.

"I think it's cute," Sakura assured him, "but are you sure you don't want to join our conversation? Hinata has a crush on Naruto, and we're trying to come up with ways to make that dolt realize it."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "Naruto? Seriously?" He paused, and cleared his throat. "Uh, I mean…I don't care. Good luck with whatever dumb stuff you're doing." He hurried off, ignoring the cheeky smiles of the three girls.

"Maybe he does have a soul," Sakura mused, turning back to the other two girls, "now, I think I have a plan…"

* * *

**(Confessional: Kakashi.) **

Kakashi glared dully into the camera, his mask hiding his pout. "I hate it here."

**(End Confessional: Kakashi.)**

* * *

Kiba let out an unflattering yawn as he entered the Mess Hall. The boy's hair was all mussed up and he was still half asleep as he walked over to the chef's counter, which had been set-up buffet style since there was no schedule to adhere to on Rest Days. The boy poured himself a cup of coffee and stocked his plate high with eggs and toast. Still half-asleep, he trudged towards the Rhino table and plopped down, letting out another yawn.

"Morning, sunshine," a voice drawled next to him.

"Eh?" Kiba looked over to see Konan two inches from his face. He let out a startled yelp and scooted away. "Jeez, Konan! Don't sneak up on me like that."

The goth raised an eyebrow at him, torn between being amused and annoyed, "I was sitting here when you walked in. You're the one that practically sat on me." She nodded her head at his coffee, "might want to start drinking that."

Kiba chuckled sheepishly, "sorry, sorry," and took a big sip of his coffee. He made a face. "Blech, it's not even warm."

"It's past noon," Konan deadpanned, "what did you expect?" She scooped up some egg with her fork and ate it.

"Pah, well you're eating breakfast too," Kiba challenged, beginning to tuck into his own meal, "look who's talking!"

Konan just stared at him. "I'm eating lunch."

"Oh…"

The two continued to eat in silence. Every couple of minutes, Kiba would sneak a glance at her, something that Konan noticed. Eventually, she couldn't help herself. Annoyed, she turned to stare pointedly at Kiba, "Do I have something on my face?"

Kiba stared at her with a mouthful of toast. "Huh?" She continued to stare at him and he swallowed the food in his mouth. "What do you mean?"

"I mean why do you keep glancing at me."

"Oh, I was glancing at you? I hadn't noticed," Kiba said breezily. He shot her a cheeky little grin and Konan felt her face flush a little.

"You are so corny," She sighed, getting up from the table with her plate.

"Thank you!" Kiba called to her. "I try my best!"

Her face hidden from the goofy boy, Konan allowed herself a small smile as she put her dishes away.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kiba.) **

"Yeah, Konan's pretty cute," Kiba admitted, his confident grin plastered on his face as per usual. "I never pegged myself as the kinda guy that goes for girls like her, but what can I say? She's interesting. Plus, she's fun to tease!" He barked out a laugh and shook his head, "ten bucks says she's not interested, and that's fine. I didn't come here looking for a girlfriend anyways."

**(End Confessional: Kiba.)**

* * *

Sasuke let out a happy sigh. The younger Uchiha was currently sunbathing on the beach in his trunks, soaking in the warm sun and enjoying the slight breeze that blew around. Sure, the beach on Wawanakwa wasn't anything special, but he was just enjoying the stress-free environment.

A shadow passed over him, and he looked up to see a familiar face standing over him. The face peered down at him, a soft smile on his face.

"Brother," Sasuke greeted, pushing himself into a sitting position.

"Hello, Sasuke," Itachi greeted warmly, "it's been a while since we've chatted. How's my little brother been faring?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, nonverbally expressing his grief with being referred to as 'little brother'. Itachi noticed this and couldn't help but simile.

"Things have been fine, I guess," Sasuke shrugged, "there's been some drama and stuff but I've been able to keep my head low."

"That is good," Itachi nodded, settling himself down in the sand next to Sasuke, "I was initially worried that you and I would be targeted because of our social status, but that doesn't seem to be the case."

"Yeah, that guy Shino made a good point," Sasuke said, "on our first day, he went on about how we all start on equal ground here. I think the guys on my team really took it to heart."

"How goes your relationship with your team?" Itachi asked him, brotherly concern evident in his voice, "have you been making friends? What about those that have been eliminated?"

Sasuke sighed, rubbing a hand over his face and doing his best not to pout at his older brother. "My relationships with my team is _fine_, Itachi. You don't always have to fret over me."

"It is my job, and I will do it always, little brother," Itachi chided.

"I know, I know," Sasuke grumbled, "anyways, some people on my team are okay. As for those who've been eliminated, we've mostly lost deadweight. Except for Tayuya, but she scared the team too much when she punched out Shikamaru."

"You disagree with their decision?"

Sasuke shrugged, "I dunno, I think she could've been useful to us. But I guess I don't care that much. He looked over at his brother, "what about you? You've been making friends?"

Itachi shrugged, "I fear that many of my teammates are quite different than I am. But that does not mean I am not friendly with them. Except for one time when I was in the bottom two, I have not been in any trouble with the Foxes."

"What?" Sasuke yelped, "who put you in the bottom two?" He clenched his hands into a fist.

Itachi smiled, finding his little brother's overprotectiveness to be quite adorable, "it was Bee, but he is long gone. It seems that Kisame had my back in that instance."

"Kisame, huh?" Sasuke ran a hand through his perfect hair and sighed. "Well, I have to admit, this game isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be."

"I'm glad you feel that way," Itachi told him happily, "By the way…" a rather teasing grin began to creep onto his face, "I've noticed that you've been hanging out with a certain girl."

Sasuke crossed his arms, flopping back onto his towel with a huff. "Why'd I know you were going to bring that up," he grumbled.

"She seems lovely," Itachi said, glancing up at the sun, "and quite…enraptured with you."

"That's putting it lightly," Sasuke said grumpily, though his frosty expression soon thawed just a tad, "she's alright, I guess. She means well. But, I didn't come here to get wrapped up in a trashy reality-show romance."

Itachi hummed, "of course, of course…"

The two brothers lapsed into silence, staring out over the bright blue lake, enjoying the sun.

* * *

Naruto, Deidera, Kurotsuchi, Shino and Karui were on the front porch of the Rhino cabin. Naruto and Deidera were currently in a heated game of Duel Minions, the most popular card game in all the land. They had dragged out one of the dressers from the cabin and were using it as a surface to play their games on. Karui had put 10 bucks on Deidera winning, while Kurotsuchi backed her teammate Naruto to win. Shiny, a self-proclaimed expert in Duel Minions, was waiting to play the winner.

"You're going down, hn!" Deidera said confidently, drawing a card from his deck. "I summon Broken Golem in attack mode! He attacks you directly!"

Naruto cackled, revealing a card on his field that was previously face down. "I activate Broken Seal! I can throw away two card to bring out Kurama the Demon Beast from my Deck!"

Deidera gasped, and even Shino raised an eyebrow. Kurotuschi noticed this, and nudged the bug-boy in the rubs, "What, uh, does that mean?" She whispered.

"Kurama the Demon Beast is the definition of a double-edged sword," Shino explained. From next to him, Karui pretended not to be interested, "its attack power is absurdly high, but any damage you inflict to your opponent is dealt back double to you."

"So what's the point?"

Shino shrugged, "I'm not sure. It's considered a gimmicky dick so I never researched it much."

"From my hand, I activate Hero's Endurance!" Naruto continued, plucking a card from his hand and putting it behind his Kurama.

Shino raised an eyebrow.

"Hero's Endurance reduces all self inflicted damage to 0," Naruto explained, "so now I can attack your Broken Golem without fear!"

Deidera gulped, "crap…"

"But that's not all, I activate Axe of Mutilation!" Naruto played another card from his hand, "I pay half of my life force, and all damage for the rest of the turn is doubled!"

"Oh, blast!" Deidera cursed, as Naruto mimed a bomb going off, "I lose!"

"That's right, 12,000 damage is way more than your life force, so I win!" Naruto thumped his chest and grinned cheekily at the artist, "good game, though!"

Shino nodded in approval as the two shook hands, "quite the unorthodox strategy there, Naruto. I'm impressed."

Naruto began collecting his cards and reshuffling them into his deck, "alright, you ready Shino?"

Shino held up a deck of his own, "I think you'll find my Insect deck to be quite the challenge."

Meanwhile, Karui muttered darkly to herself as she dug through her pockets. She finally came up with a crumpled $10 and jammed it into Kurotsuchi's outstretched palm.

"Pleasure doing business with ya," Kurotsuchi winked.

* * *

Shikamaru sighed, in borderline bliss. He was currently located at the top of the massive cliff. He was enveloped in shaggy grass, eyes up in the sky as he watched the clouds go by. The sun washed over him, and he had been drifting in and out of a light sleep. Life was good. Unfortunately, life got a little less good when he heard footsteps crunching in the grass behind him.

"Oh," a voice said, "I didn't know you were up here, sorry."

Shikamaru lifted himself up onto his elbows and tilted his head back, observing the newcomer. "What are you doing here?"

Temari stared down at him. "I was just coming up here to relax. I'll go, though. I don't want to disturb you."

"No!" Shikamaru said, a little too quickly, "err, it's fine." He continued in a much calmer tone, "I'm just relaxing up here, you won't bother me."

Temari eyed him for a second before smiling slightly. "Alright, great." She plopped down into the grass next to him and leaned back on her palms, enjoying the sun. Shikamaru stared at her for as second, but quickly shook his head and went back to resting in the grass.

The two enjoyed a comfortable silence as they basked in the sun. Shikamaru thought life got a little better once Temari showed up.

* * *

"Hey, watch it!" TenTen squealed, flinching as she was splashed with a bunch of water.

Kisame emerged from the water, his normal sharky grin in full view. He looked up at TenTen, who was sitting on the Dock. "Sorry about that."

"No you're not," TenTen smirked, kicking her legs to get the water off of them.

"Are you going to join me?" He gestured to her bathing suit, "the waters great."

"I dunno, maybe," the martial artist shrugged, "I've never been a fan of cold water."

"Oh, really?" Kisame's tone was full of mock concern as he swam over to the edge of the Dock.

TenTen tensed, and her smirk grew into a grin, "Get away from me," she warned, "don't even think about it."

Kisame reached up with a muscled arm and grabbed onto TenTen's ankle. With a gentle tug, she slid off the wet Dock with a shriek and collapsed into the water. The athlete couldn't help but cackle as TenTen emerged from the water, spluttering.

"You jerk!" She scolded, though her laughter kind of ruined the effect, "I'm gonna get you for that!" She pounced on him and the two disappeared underneath the water, wrestling ferociously.

* * *

**(Confessional: TenTen.)**

TenTen rolled her eyes, still in her bathing suit. "He is _such_ a stinker," She said affectionally.

**(End Confessional: TenTen.)**

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.) **

"Isn't she marvelous?" A slightly beat up Kisame sighed to the camera.

**(End Confessional: Kisame.) **

* * *

Dinner came and went. As everyone was finishing up their meals, Kiba jumped to his feet and addressed the Mess Hall as a whole. "Oi, everyone!" He called, getting the attention of everyone, "we're doing a bonfire after dinner! Be there or be square!"

"We are?" Temari asked him, a little confused.

"Yeah!" Kiba shot the room a thumbs up, "it can be like a tradition on our rest days! We can forget the competition just for a little bit and relax. Reminisce about our fallen comrades and all that!"

Naruto clapped his hands together, "Sounds good," he said happily, "I'm in!"

"I expect _everyone_ to be there!" With his piece said, Kiba sat down happily.

Sure enough, twenty minutes later saw Kiba and Temari on the beach gathering up a bunch of driftwood. Even Akamaru was pitching in and grabbing twigs in the dark.

"Hey guys," Kurotsuchi greeted, walking over the cool sand to join them, "need some help? I can-aaaah!" She tripped over a rock and face planted into the sand. She got up, spewing sand out of her mouth, "darn it! I can't see anything, it's too dark!"

"Yeah, that's why we're trying to get the fire going, duh," Kiba pointed out, shaking his head.

"Here, use this," a voice said from behind him, making him jump. It was Konan, and she was holding out a lighter to him,

"Ooh, thanks!" Kiba thanked her, swiping the lighter and bending down to the little stack of twigs they had gathered.

"Why do you have a lighter?" Temari questioned, "you don't smoke, do you?"

Konan shook her head and simply replied, "no, they're just cool."

"Ah yes, fire makers. _Super _cool," came a sarcastic voice behind them. Kisame and TenTen had arrived. The lighter finally caught the wood and a flame began to bloom.

"Here, let me," Sasuke said, stepping out of the darkness and bending down in front of the fire. Konan offered him the lighter and Sasuke began to carefully coax the flame into a full on campfire. With a minute, the fire was crackling merrily.

Meanwhile, three girls were taking their time walking towards the beach.

"Alright, so you know the plan?" Sakura whispered to Hinata.

"I…I think so," Hinata said nervously, rubbing the tips of her pointer fingers together, "I still don't know about this, though…"

"Relax, sweetie," Ino assured her, "this is nothing drastic, okay? We're not acting you to get all slutty on him!"

Hinata nearly fainted on the spot, "I…I…uh…"

"Don't tease her, Ino," Sakura scolded, "now c'mon, let's get to the fire."

The three girls quickened their pace and saw the crackling flames of the fire up ahead. Everyone else was already present and chatting as they approached.

"Hey, girls!" Temari waved them over, "about time you showed up!"

"Yeah, yeah, sorry!" Ino giggled, plopping herself down between Karui and Itachi.

Sakura settled herself down next to Sasuke, "I take it this fire is your baby, Sasuke?" She teased.

A smirk played at the corner of his mouth, "I guess you could say that," he agreed. He noticed Sakura quickly look over at Hinata as she walked up to Naruto, and he couldn't help his curiosity, "what's going on between you three, by the way?" He asked, referring to her, Ino and HInata's tardiness.

"I wish I could tell you," Sakura said mischievously, "but I can't break Girl-Code like that, Sasuke!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but didn't press the matter. Instead, he quietly observed the two Foxes.

"He…hey Naruto," Hinata greeted, staring shyly down at the sitting Naruto, "mind if I sit here?" She asked, gesturing to a bit of empty sand next to him.

"Of course!" Naruto pat the sand next to him, "take a seat!"

Hintara sat down next to him, and turned to Kiba as he launched into speech.

"Well, guys, it feels like its been a while since we last had one of these, especially with that horrible camping challenge feeling like it took forever," Kiba lamented, earning a few laughs from the others, "and we find ourselves down another three campers." He pulled out a bag of marshmallow and shook three out onto his hand.

"Hey, where'd you get those?" Deidera asked, surprised.

"Nabbed 'em from the Mess Hall when Chef wasn't looking," Kiba said, tossing one into the fire, "for Fu, who seemed like a super chill chick. Sorry you messed up your cheerleading routine."

Karui nodded, "I figured that's why you guys eliminated her. She seemed nice, though."

"She was," Sakura agreed, "and she was totally cool about why we voted her off, too."

Kiba flicked another marshmallow into the fire, "for Karin, who…didn't really deserve to go home, actually," he let out an awkward chuckle, "but my dope teammates decided to save me instead. Thanks again for that."

"So that's what happened?" TenTen asked, "we just figured Karin was super annoying because you lost the challenge for your team but were still there."

"She wasn't annoying, she just didn't do anything," Temari clarified, nodding at Kiba, "Kiba, on the other hand, had proved his worth to the team despite his monumental mess-up."

Karui snorted, "seems like a risky call."

"Guess we'll find out soon enough," Temari said with a knowing look at Kiba.

"And then there's Lee," Kiba tossed the last marshmallow over the fire towards TenTen, who caught it with a surprised look. "I figured I'd let you Foxes do the toast, him being your teammate and all."

"Oh, err, I didn't really know him that well," TenTen admitted, feeling a little awkward. "Not sure I'm best suited."

"Give it to Naruto, he was friends with him," Kurotsuchi suggested.

Seeing nothing wrong with the suggestion, TenTen nodded and tossed the marshmallow to Naruto, who caught it easily. The blonde was uncharacteristically silent for a moment, opting to choose his words carefully. Eventually, he tossed it into the fire.

"Lee," he said, a little sad, "you were a good friend, and I think your energy was good for the team. I think they'll miss you more than they realize."

Karui scoffed, "not likely."

Naruto shot her a dirty look, but said nothing. A comfortable silence settled over the group of sixteen campers. Soon enough, idle chatter was back as the campers all talked with each other, laughing and joking and generally being dumb teens.

Next to Naruto, Hinata shivered a bit. Naruto noticed, "eh, you cold, Hinata?"

Hinata gave him a tiny shrug, "A little," she admitted.

Naruto grinned at her, "Hey, it'll be like the forest, but in reverse! I'm super warm, so snuggle up!"

Hinata blushed, "are you sure?"

"You bet, I owe you one!" Naruto said happily.

Tentatively, Hintata scooched over and pressed her side into Naruto's. She leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Better?" Naruto asked her.

Hinata nodded, "yeah…" she said quietly, "thanks…"

Naruto stared down at her and, as if a switch had flipped inside of him, seemed to realize for the first time that a pretty girl was snuggling against him. He felt his face heat up and he quickly looked back at the fire and the teens. Most of the others hadn't paid them any mind, but he caught the eye of one of his teammates, who fired a sharky grin back at him.

Kisame grinned at the nervous Naruto. He was not the only one to notice, as Ino and Sakura were also sporting borderline-goofy smiles. The athlete was very much enjoying the blonde's obvious awkwardness, but he also couldn't help but feel like he wanted to aid the floundering boy. Once they made eye contact, he mouthed the word _Relax_ to him.

Naruto complied, and settled his tense shoulders a little. This allowed Hinata a better angle to rest her head on his shoulder.

Kisame nodded, and mouthed, _Next, follow my lead. _Naruto looked a little confused, but waited to see what he would do. Super casual and comfortable, Kisame reached an arm around the person to his left and draped it around her shoulder. He scooted the girl in a little closer to him.

TenTen turned to look at him, surprised and a little flushed, but Kisame didn't meet her eyes, not making a big deal of it and choosing to respond to a joke that Shikamaru had made with a joke of his own, earning some laughs. The shock slowly melted off TenTen's face, and she settled into Kisame's half-embrace with a small smile.

Comforted by the big jocks casual success, Naruto repeated his actions, gently wrapping his arm around Hinata. The girl squeaked in surprise, but seemed to melt into his embrace quite comfortably. Naruto looked back at Kisame for assurance, and received a wink in return. Success.

Sakura eyed Naruto and Hinata happily, though she couldn't help but wish that she could do that with Sasuke herself. But, she knew that the boy she was currently crushing on was definitely not the 'PDA' type, and she could live with that. First, she had to know for sure if she even had a shot with him. He _was_ some millionaire's kid after all. On top of being a total hottie, he was rich as hell. He could probably have any girl he wanted.

_Enough negative talk_, she scolded herself, _just enjoy yourself_.

"Everything okay?" A voice broke her out of her thoughts, and she looked at Sasuke, surprised. "Eh? Oh, everything's fine, Sasuke. Don't worry about me!"

"Hmm," he gave her a suspicious once over, then returned to his conversation with Shino about business analytics.

The talking lasted later than was probably smart given the fact that they had a challenge the next day, and it wasn't until the fire was merely embers that they began to drift back to their cabins, ready for sleep.

Sakura was walking back in the dark by herself when she felt someone glomp her in an excited hug. "Whoa!" She gasped.

"Did you see that?" A happy Ino squealed, squeezing the life out of the pinkette, "our plan worked like a charm!"

Sakura gasped and choked, trying to free herself from Ino's rib-crusher. Once able to properly take in oxygen, she grinned, "we _are_ good, aren't we?"

The two laughed and high-fived.

"Alright, now that our co-op mission is over, don't think I've forgotten about Sasuke," Ino warned her playfully, "I'll get through to him yet."

Sakura scoffed, "good luck! You don't stand a chance with him!"

"Oh? Wanna bet?"

"I do, actually!"

Sparks flew between their eyes for a second, before both grinned at each other.

"Well, I'll see ya around, Pinky," Ino teased.

"Fine, Prissy," Sakura shot back, "try not to get voted off!"

"Right back at ya!"

The two smirked at each other once more before going their separate ways to the cabin.

The air of competition began to creep back over the camp. They had once again been allowed to relax for a brief period, but their respite was over. The next time they would taste such a stress-free environment, three more would be gone. But, as everyone settled into bed, a similar thought flashed through each of their minds.

It had been a pretty good day.

* * *

**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Kiba, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Deidera, Konan.**

**Fierce Foxes: Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**

**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya, Fu, Karin, Lee.**

* * *

**Well, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Like I said, just a fun, fluffy little chapter that gets the ball rolling for some of our couples! **

**Who do you think will be the three unlucky campers that won't make the next Rest Day? Who will we have to say goodbye to?  
**

**Which fanon couple do you guys hope get together the most out of everyone thats been teased?**

**Let me know, and I'll catch you guys next time! Ciao! **


	10. Up the Creek!

**Time for chapter 10! Camper #7 will be walking the Dock after this. Who's it gonna be? Your guess is as good as mine! …okay not really, I **_**do**_** know who it will be.**

**But I digress, let's get on with the chapter! **

* * *

The episode opened on the sixteen campers standing around on the beach, near the edge of the water as the morning sun shined merrily over the campground. The remaining teens were ready to face the days challenge.

At his normal spot in front of the group, Chris was getting ready to explain the challenge to them. "Alright, campers. Today's challenge is a true summer camp experience: a canoe trip!" He pointed down the beach, where four red and four green canoes were parked in the sand. "You'll be paddling these canoes across the lake to…" he dropped his tone to a creepy drawl, "_Boney Island_!"

"Boney Island?" Temari repeated, confused.

"Boney Island," Chris repeated, "a small island located about a half mile from here. Claustrophobic and dangerous, it's sure to wreck havoc on you little heathens!" The sixteen campers gulped, but Chris was quick to reassure them. "Don't worry, I have Obito and Kakashi stationed there incase any of you get horribly maimed…hahaha!"

"That's such a relief…" Sasuke grumbled.

"Now, once your on the island, you'll have to portage with your canoes," Chris continued. When he received a handful of blank looks, he elaborated: "Portage means run with your canoes, people. Seriously, did none of you ever have a vocabulary test in school?"

"Hey!" Karui said defensively, "spelling is hard."

"Whatever, morons," Chris said breezily, "now the trek across Boney Island is about a two hour hike through dangerous, buggy, muggy jungle. So watch yourself, okay? Once you reach the other side of the island, you'll need to create a signal fire! Once it's judged to be acceptable by your team's counselor, you will paddle back here! First team to get every member back on this beach wins invincibility! Losers will send someone packing, as usual." He stared sternly out over all of them, "also I feel I should warn you…legend has it that everything on Boney Island is cursed! So do not, I repeat _do not_ take anything with you back from the island! Don't even pick anything up, because bad juju will befall you!"

His warning didn't seem to have the desired impact, as most of the campers snorted or rolled their eyes at his ridiculous warning.

"Hey, its your funeral," he told them icily, pulling an airhorn from his pocket. "Okay, if there are no further questions…" he blared the airhorn, "GO!"

Everyone sprinted down towards the beach, instantly grabbed the correct canoes and splitting off into groups.

"Teams of two!" Temari barked to the Rhinos, "you're with me, Shikamaru!"

Shikamaru nodded, and helped Temari drag the canoes over to the water.

"Wanna go together?" Kiba asked Konan. From atop his head, Akamaru gave an excited little yip.

Konan smiled lightly at the dog, but it quickly grew weary as she took in Kiba's excited grin. "Fine, I guess."

"Cool!" Kiba whooped, "let's get this puppy in the water! Literally!"

"Ha ha."

"Sasuke," Sakura approached the handsome boy, her tone and vibe rather timid, "would you want to group together in the canoe?"

"Fine," Sasuke nodded, "let's go."

To his face, Sakura seemed just mildly excited, but the moment he turned his back on her, she punched the air victoriously and stuck her tongue out at Ino, who was watching the two with narrowed eyes.

"Guess that leaves you and me, hn!" Deidera threw an arm around an unbothered Shino. "Let's paddle quick!"

Shino nodded, but offered no verbal response.

Over on the Foxes, they too were pairing up with little issue.

"Let's show those boys how girls row," Kurotsuchi boasted, smacking her bicep as she exchanged a grin with Karui.

Karui walked over to her designated canoe and lifted it up with ease. "Hell yeah," she said as Kurotsuchi took the other end, "they won't know what hit 'em!"

"Let's go, TenTen," Kisame said, walking over to a canoe and lifting it above his head single-handledly.

TenTen admitted his impressive feat of strength. "Sure thing," she said agreeably, jogging over to keep pace as he brought the canoe into the water. "You want some help with that?"

"Nah," Kisame grinned at her, pointy teeth on full display, "I like to show off."

Meanwhile, Naruto was working up the nerve to ask Hint to be his canoe partner.

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.)**

Naruto smacked his face. "I don't know whats wrong with me!" He complained. "All this time I've had no problem talking to Hinata like she's one of my buds, y'know? But after last night at the fire, the thought of talking to her makes me feel all hot and nervous!" He ran his hands through his hair, agitated, "I've never felt like this before! Maybe I'm sick?"

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

"Er, Hinata," Naruto uttered, finally working up the courage to approach the girl. Hinata, who was currently struggling to drag a canoe into the water by herself, jumped in surprise and whipped around to face the blond.

"Oh! H-hey, Naruto!" She said shyly, "what's up?"

A dull flush crept up Naruto's neck, and he struggled to not fumble his words. "Uh, well…I was wondering if…perhaps…"

"Oiii! Hinataaa!" Came a new voice, and Naruto was elbowed out of the way by Ino. "Want to be canoe partners?"

Hinata smiled at the excited model. "Sure, Ino! Let's go!"

Naruto picked himself off the ground and spewed sand from his mouth. He glared at the backs of the two girls. "Hey! I was gonna ask Hinata to be my canoe partner!"

Ino, who was already guiding Hinata to the water, froze in her tracks. She whipped around, a michevious glint in her eye. "Is that so? Well pardon me! I'll let you two get your canoe in the water!" She nudged Hinata gently with her elbow and offered the girl a wink before jogging to the only other Fox yet to be paired up. "Have fun you two!" She sang.

Both Hinata and Naruto watched the girl run off before sharing a confused look. "What the heck was that about?" Naruto questioned.

Hinata shrugged her shoulders and hummed an 'I-don't-know' noise. "Well, we should probably get this canoe in the water."

"Right," Naruto agreed, picking up one end of the canoe as Hinata took the other.

Over with Ino, she had ran up to Itachi and hugged the older boy's arm. "Hey there, handsome!" She cooed, "wanna be partners?"

"Considering there's no other option…" Itachi said dryly.

"Great! Let's go!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Ino.)**

"This is great!" Ino cheered, "I get to pick Itachi's brain about what Sasuke likes, and use that information to my advantage."

**(End Confessional: Ino.)**

* * *

All eight canoes were now in the water and everyone was paddling hard towards Boney Island. At the front of the group, unsurprisingly, were Kisame and TenTen, who's athletic prowess had them breezing past the competition. Right behind them were Karui and Kurotsuchi, with Shino an Deidera and Shikamaru and Temari right behind them.

"So…" TenTen said, sweat glistening on her brow as she and Kisame sped through the water.

Kisame waited for he to continue, but after ten seconds went by he turned around to raise an eyebrow at her, "so what?"

A dull flush appeared on the black belt's face, though it could easily be written off due to the exertion. "So…what was up with last night?"

"What about last night?" Kisame asked casually.

"You know, at the fire," TenTen told him, annoyed that she had to elaborate, "when you were getting all _snuggly_."

Kisame chuckled at her choice of words. "Snuggly, eh? What, did it bother you? I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"No!" TenTen said, quicker than she wanted to, "I mean…I just didn't think that you'd be the type to take an interest in girls…"

"Excuse me?!" Kisame spluttered, "I am not gay!" He paused his paddling to rub his chin thoughtfully, "not that there's anything _wrong_ with that, but I'm not."

TenTen's face turned tomato red, and she stopped her paddling too to cover her face in embarrassment. "No! That's not what I meant, that's not what I meant!" She shook her head, "I meant to say I didn't think you'd take an interest in girls _while on the show_. You're just…very competitive."

Kisame just chuckled some more, "you're cute when you're flustered, you know that?" He yelped when TenTen's paddle bonked him on the head, and he raised an arm up to rub the sore spot. "Oi!"

"I don't like being teased," TenTen warned him, though her cheeky grin kind of ruined the effect.

Kisame continued to rub his head, "duly noted…"

The two elapsed into more silence, the only noise being the paddles as they whistled through the water and the distant voices from the other boats.

"You didn't answer my question," TenTen eventually pointed out, squinting at the back of Kisame's head.

"I didn't think it actually needed answering," Kisame replied, "you're a cute girl and you're fun to hang around, so I showed some affection."

"And that's it?" TenTen said skeptically.

"Afraid so, Sensei," Kisame turned to smirk at her, "sorry to break your heart." His eyes widened and he ducked as TenTen's paddle whistled over his head. He straightened back up and barked out a laugh. "Whoa! Easy there."

"You're a jerk," She said playfully, "and nice ego, by the way! I did _not_ come here to meet boys. I'm here to win some money!"

Kisame nodded, afraid any more words would result in a paddle to his kiwis.

* * *

**(Confessional: Kisame.) **

"Sure, TenTen's cute," Kisame says idly, arms crossed as he leaned against the wall of the Confessional, "but she and I are of the same mindset. Perhaps if we met outside of a competition it could work. But we're both too competitive to let something as stupid as love get in the way of winning." His eyes widened slightly, "er, I mean crushes, not love!"

**(End Confessional: Kisame.)**

* * *

Deidera and Shino were paddling along in an awkward silence. The two hadn't really interacted much despite being on the same team, as both boys usually kept to themselves if possible: Deidera to work on his art and Shino just because he liked being alone.

"So…" Shino finally said, "what got you so into art?"

"I liked it," Deidera said simply, "ever since I was a boy. I can't ever remember a time in my life that I didn't love creating things."

"That's nice," Shino nodded, and the two fell back into silence.

"So…what got you into bugs?" Deidera asked.

"My parents are both entomologists," Shino explained. Deidera just stared at him blankly, "it means bug scientist," Shino continued. Realization dawned on the artists face and he shot him a thumbs up.

"Super cool! So you've been around bugs forever, hn?"

Shine nodded. "Yup. I plan to follow in my parent's footsteps. Winning this show would pay for my college ride."

"Hey, me too!" Deidera said excitedly, "I want to go to an art school in Milan, but its' pretty expensive! I've already saved up some money by selling my creations, but $100,000 would make things a million times easier."

Shino nodded, "well I wish you good luck on acquiring the prize."

"You too, hn!"

* * *

"So, Itachi…" Ino said, perched at the front of the canoe with her paddle across her lap. The model had barely done any paddling since they had set off. "Tell me something…"

The older boy had sweat running down his forehead, acquired from the exertion of solo paddling the canoe. He was doing his best to remain patient with the beautiful girl. "Tell you what?"

"Your little brother Sasuke, does he have a girlfriend?"

Itachi wiped the sweat from his brow. "I don't know," he said placidly.

Ino tsk'd, turning to face him, "oh come on, we both know that's a lie!" She gave him her best puppy dog eyes, "tell me?"

"Perhaps I'll tell you if you start paddling," Itachi said dryly.

Ino let out a large sigh, but hefted her paddle nonetheless. "Fine," she pouted, and began to paddle.

After a couple minutes of paddling in silence, Itachi finally spoke up. "My brother did not have a girlfriend before coming here, no. But he did not come here looking for one either."

"I'm sensing a 'but', here," Ino told him.

"But indeed," Itachi agreed, "I believe my brother is in the process of falling for one of the girls here." Ino opened her mouth to say something, "but I will _not_ be telling you who it is." He finished firmly.

"Aw, that's no fun," Ino pouted, though she seemed to accept his decision. "What about you, huh? Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Yes," Itachi said simply.

Ino turned around again to face him, "well, tell me about her! Are you in love?"

For the first time since he had arrived on the island, Itachi looked mildly uncomfortable, "Izumi and I are very happy together," he said calmly.

"Is she pretty? How long have you been dating? Are you gonna marry her? When's your anniversary?"

Itachi just sighed.

* * *

"And that's how I ended up suspended for two weeks!" Kiba finished with a chuckle.

Konan rolled her eyes, "fascinating…" she drawled. Akamaru yipped up at her from her lap, and she absentmindedly reached down to pat the pup.

Kiba peeked his head over her shoulder, looking down at Akamaru. "How're you doing, bud? Okay?" Akamaru gave a yip and response and proceeded to rapidly lick Konan's hand. "It's his first time on a boat," he explained to the girl.

"I see."

"So," Kiba said conversationally, "if we lose again, who do you think you're going to vote off?"

Konan narrowed her eyes, though the boy couldn't see that as he was sitting behind her in the narrow canoe. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I thought we could form an alliance!" Kiba offered, "y'know, vote together and stuff so we stick around! We spend a lot of time together anyways, right?"

"Hmmm," Konan said, noncommittal.

"C'mon, I know you prefer to be alone, but you can't win a social game like Total Drama by yourself," Kiba pressured her, "I mean, you _do_ want to win, right?"

"Of course I do," Konan said with an annoyed scoff, "you really think I'd subject myself to all this crap if I wasn't serious about winning?"

Kiba just shrugged, "you're the one that's refusing an alliance."

"I'm not refusing, I'm just not sure. I'll let you know after this challenge."

* * *

Eventually, the canoes all came within site of land. Within minutes, they had beached their canoes in the surf and dragged them onto shore.

"Alright, team!" Temari barked, "let's get moving! Everyone grab a canoe!"

The Rhino duo's all grabbed a canoe and lifted them over their heads. In a flash, they were all sprinting into the woods.

"After them!" Karui barked, grabbing a canoe with Kurotuschi. "Don't let them gain a lead!"

The Foxes ran after them, but the camera switched to the Rhinos as they led the pack. Eventually they reached a fork in the path.

"Left or right?" Sakura asked Temari, the defacto team leader.

"Left!" Temari said quickly, "let go before the others catch up and decide to follow us!" The four duos jogged off down the left path.

About thirty seconds later, the Foxes arrived at the same fork, and debated where to go.

"Let's go left!" Naruto suggested.

Kurotsuchi left the canoe momentarily to check the left path. She bent down and examine the ground. "There's fresh footprints here," she told the team, "the Rhinos took this path."

"We should take the other path then," Karui suggested. "That way theres a chance we'll pass them."

"I agree," Itachi said.

"Alright, let's go!" Naruto said, bowling his way to the front of the group with Hinata in tow.

The Foxes ran off down the right path.

* * *

The camera cut to a shot of the other side of the island, where two fire pits were set up. There was currently no one around, but the sound of panting and footsteps was heard off-screen. After a few seconds, the Rhinos ran on screen, sweating and dirty from their two-hour trek through the jungle.

"Alright, we're the first team here!" Sakura cheered, dropping her canoe onto the ground with a grunt.

"Alright, Sasuke and I are on fire duty," Temari commanded, "the rest of you, get scavenging in the jungle for wood! We're gonna need a pretty big fire so get a lot!"

The six other Rhinos nodded and spread off into the jungle. The camera followed Kiba as he and Akamaru jogged into the forest.

"Alright, Akamaru! It's your time to shine!" He told the dog, "fetch some wood, okay?"

Akamaru gave a happy little yip and bounded into the undergrowth. Kiba smiled at his dog and then bent own and began collecting sticks of his own. After a few minutes, he heard some rustling behind him and Akamaru bounded out of the brush, something wooden clamped between his jaws.

"Good job, bud!" Kiba bent down to grab the stick, but he paused when he realized it wasn't a stick at all. It was a wooden tiki doll, and it looked quite old.

"Whoa, cool," Kiba tried to pry the tiki doll away, but Akamaru didn't want to give it up. He gave a playful yip and bounded a few feet away, tail wagging as he gnawed on the tiki doll.

"You should have him drop it," came a voice from behind Kiba, making him jump. He turned around to see Konan standing behind him, pale arms on her hips. "Remember what Chris said?"

"Oh come on," Kiba said playfully, "you really believe all that curse mumbo-jumbo?"

"I think we shouldn't take unnecessary risks." Konan retorted.

"Fine, fine," Kiba turned around to his pup, "alright Akamaru, drop it."

Akamaru whined, but bent to drop the idol. Before it left his mouth, though, a loud growl was heard from behind the two people and dog. All three whipped around to see a bush nearby rumbling. Akamaru let out a terrified yelp and bolted in the opposite direction. A bobcat tore out of the bush, in pursuit of the puppy.

"Akamaru!" Kiba bellowed, scrambling into a sprint after the two animals. "Get away from him!"

Konan watched, mouth agape, as both dog, cat, and boy disappeared into the dense jungle.

"Kiba!" She yelled after him, but received no response. A footstep behind her snapped a twig, and the goth yelped and whipped around again. It was just Sakura, though.

"Konan, is everything okay? I thought I heard yelling."

"A bobcat chased after Akamaru, and Kiba went chasing after it," Konan said, her heart still thumping in her ears. "I don't know if we should go after it…"

Sakura covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh no! Should we go help him?"

Konan eyed the patch of jungle Kiba had disappeared into. "No…" she finally said, "we need to focus on the challenge. We can't lose our lead. I'm sure Kiba can handle it."

Sakura seemed a little uncertain, but eventually nodded. "Alright, let's get more wood…"

* * *

The Foxes had finally made it to the campsite, though it had taken them much longer than the Rhinos. They were sweating and panting and overall much more exhausted than their opponents.

"Alright…" Kisame said, hands on his knees as he struggled to catch his breath. "I'll start collecting firewood. Who wants to make the fire?"

"I'll do it," Itachi said, "everyone else needs to get wood as quickly as possible."

The rest of the Foxes nodded and sprinted off, mingling into the same areas where the Rhinos were as everyone scrambled to find some nice, dry branches.

The Rhinos were making good progress, with Sasuke and Temari already nursing a small flame. They had a decently sized pile of wood next to them. Only one problem for them existed:

"Any sign of Kiba?" Temari asked Konan, eyes still on the fire.

Konan bit her lip, looking back towards the woods. "No…not yet."

"Well, let's hope he gets back," Sasuke said bluntly, also focusing most of his attention on the fire. "Because if he costs us the challenge again, he's _gone_."

Temari nodded her agreement, but that just made Konan look more upset.

The camera switched to show Naruto by himself, picking up sticks rapidly. The blonde was upset with himself, as the canoe ride over had been very awkward as he couldn't think of anything to say with Hinata. Since Hinata was so naturally quiet and shy, the entire trip had been in silence, and Naruto was kicking himself for it.

"She's probably gonna want a different partner on the way back," Naruto grumbled to himself, gripping his bundle of sticks tightly as he headed back towards the fire pit. "Why can't you just talk to her, stupid?"

"Talk to who?"

Naruto jumped about a foot in the air and turned to see Sakura behind him, her armful of sticks.

"No one," Naruto said quickly, "I was just talking to myself."

Sakura was silent for a moment before a sly grin appeared on her face. Naruto saw this and gulped.

"You meant Hinata, didn't you?"

Naruto's cheeks went rosy. "No!"

"Oh please, I _saw_ you two snuggling last night by the campfire," Sakura accused, her sly smile never wavering. "Do you need advice on how to talk to girls?"

The rosiness in his cheeks darkened, but the boy was stubborn. "I'm fine!"

Sakura eyed the boy critically for a couple seconds, but eventually decided to cease her verbal assault. "Alright, then…well if you ever need advice, just let me know. No one here knows the way to a girls heart better than I do!"

Naruto nodded, then the two parted ways to deposit their sticks back with their team.

* * *

**(Confessional: Naruto.) **

"I don't need any help!" Naruto boasted, his expression stubborn and grumpy.

**(End Confessional: Naruto.)**

* * *

The Foxes had gathered up an acceptable amount of wood and were now struggling to get a fire a going in their fire pit.

"C'mon, gorgeous!" Karui complained, watching as Itachi fiddled with the fire, "can't you get this started any faster?"

"I'm doing my best," Itachi said patiently, eyes narrowed in concentration as he deftly arranged sticks and twigs. "Just be patient."

"It's hard to be patient when the Rhinos have that going," TenTen pointed out, pointing over to the Rhino team.

The fire for the Rhinos was now crackling merrily, and Temari and Sasuke were looking pleased with the fruits of their labor.

"Good point," Itachi sighed. He renewed his attempts, this time with more vigor.

Kakashi and Obito were nearby, lounging on beach chairs as the campers scuttled about.

"Looks like my team is winning," Kakashi said breezily, eyes on his book.

"Don't count us out yet, Kakashi!" Obito said excitedly, "we've still got a chance! Besides, aren't you missing a player?"

"I'm sure he'll be back in time," Kakashi replied, obviously unbothered by Kiba's absence.

"Oi!" Temari called from their fire, "Kakashi! Is this fire high enough?"

Kakashi let out a dramatic sigh and hoisted himself up from his lounge chair. He meandered over to the Rhinos and examined the now-roaring fire.

"Yeah, it's good," he said, "you guys can head back to camp."

The Rhinos all let out cheers and started running towards the canoe, but a sharp voice stopped them in their tracks.

"Holy on, guys!" Temari barked, "we can't leave without Kiba."

"He's still not back yet?!" Deidera groaned.

"We have to find him," Konana told the team, "otherwise it doesn't matter if we come back first. Chris said we needed the whole team."

The rest of the Rhinos voiced their agreement, and they all ran off into the woods to search for Kiba and Akamaru.

"They're missing a player!" Kisame realized as he watched them disappear into the jungle. "We have a chance to catch up! Let's go, team!"

The Foxes, who now had a small flame to their name, picked up their efforts to increase their pace. With renewed hope came increased success, and before long their fire was crackling and roaring.

* * *

"Kiba! Kiba where are you, hn?!" Deidera bellowed into the trees.

"C'mon, Kiba! We have to go!" Temari shouted.

The Type-A and artist were in the deep jungle, wading through waist high leafy foliage in search for their missing teammate.

Finally, mercifully, the two heard a shout from a bit deeper in the woods.

"What was that?" Deidera asked, eyes wide.

Temari jogged towards the source of the noise. "I don't know, let's go find out!"

After about a hundred yards, the two Rhinos came upon a cave. It was decently sized, but both stepped back and let out gasps of shock.

Because, across the mouth of the twenty-foot cave, was an _enormous _spider web. Each strand was about as thick as Temari's forearm.

What was most shocking, though, was the cocooned boy trapped in the web.

"Guys!" Kiba said gratefully, "thank God you're here! Get me the hell out!" He wriggled fruitlessly against the silk strands binding him to the web.

"This has to be a set, right?" Temari said, "some cheap setup by Chris?"

"I don't know," Kiba panted, "but that spider was huge, and I don't want it to come back!"

"Where's Akamaru, hn?"

"He's with me, under my sweatshirt," Kiba told them. "Don't worry, he's okay!"

"Good," Deidera said, pulling out a box knife from his pocket. At Temari's alarmed look, the boy shrugged. "It helps cut through clay, hn. Besides, you never know when you might need a knife." He began to hack at the strands of silk trapping Kiba in.

"Seriously though," Temari continued, looking around nervously, "how big of a spider are we talking about, here? I know generally how big spiders are supposed to be…something big enough to naturally make webs these thick must be the size of a minivan."

"Sounds about right," Kiba agreed, beaming at Deidera when he was able to cut one of his arms free. "I thought it was animatronic or fake at first…but that thing sure moves like its real."

"It _has_ to be fake," Temari said firmly, "no way that some stupidly big spider just lives on this wack island."

"Chris did say the island was cursed," Deidera said.

"Yeah, I wish Akamaru had dropped the tiki doll sooner," Kiba grumbled, "we could've avoided all this. I didn't buy that curse stuff at first either…but after seeing that spider I dunno…"

Didera freed Kiba's other arm and began hacking away at the legs. "Temari, I have things under control here. Go gather the rest of the team, I'll get us back once he's free."

Temari nodded, patting the boy on the shoulder as she walked past him. "Good work, Deidera, we might still have a shot at this."

Deidera grinned at her, and then returned his focus to the half-suspended Kiba.

"Hurry up, I have to pee," Kiba whined.

After a few more minutes of cutting and hacking, Kiba thumped onto his back, free from the sticky spider web. Akamaru peeked his head out from Kiba's sweatshirt, and gave a thankful little yip Deideras way.

"No problem, hn!" Deidera said with a wink at Akamaru. He pocketed his box knife. "Alright, we have to go, though!"

Kiba dusted himself off as he climbed to his feet. He gave a grim nod. "Let's do this!"

The two began to sprint through the jungle, heading back towards the beaches. They leapt over rocks and ducked under branches as they sped speedily towards their destination. Within a couple more minutes, the leafy dirt turned into sand as they emerged on the beach.

"Alright, I'm back!" Kiba whooped, leaping into the clearing. Behind him, Akamaru gave an excited yip. He grinned exuberantly at his team, but the grin faded when he took in what was in front of him.

Two ember filled fire pits, four green canoes, and six disappointed looking Rhinos.

"Where…where's the other team?" Kiba asked nervously.

"They left about ten minutes ago," Kakashi told the boy, still lounging on his beach chair with Obito. "Good luck catching up."

Kiba let out an audible gulp.

* * *

Chris stood on the starting line, waiting for the first team to arrive. Out of the misty afternoon came four red boats, and the Foxes happily leapt out of the water and onto the beach.

"Congratulations, Foxes!" Chris said to them, his hostly smile on full display, "you've won the challenge!"

The Foxes all cheered. Naruto wrapped Hinata in a bear hug, and Karui and Kurotsuchi shared a high-five.

"You all are safe tonight," Chris continued, "enjoy the rest of your night!"

The Foxes all filed off towards the cabins, in very good spirits at having avoided elimination.

Chris turned back towards the water, "and now we wait for the losers…" he said with a grin.

As it turns out, he didn't have to wait _too_ too long. Within another fifteen minutes, the downtrodden and gloomy Rhinos appeared out of the mist. They docked their canoes on the sandy beach and clambered clumsily towards the host.

"Looks like this news won't exactly shock you, but you lost, Rhinos!" Chris told them. "What happened?"

"Let's just say its a bad idea to bring a puppy to a comeptive summer camp," Sasuke said with a glare at Kiba. Kiba just sighed and kept his eyes glued to the floor.

"Well, regardless you're eliminating someone tonight," Chris said, "I'll see you guys later!"

* * *

**(Confessional: Hinata.) **

Hinata covers her rosy cheeks, embarrassed and confused. "I'm not sure what is going on with Naruto…he's acting very strange recently. He was cuddling with me last night, but then he barely says two words to me in the canoes today…" she sighed, "then he hugged me after the challenge!" She holds her head in her hands, "I'm confused…"

**(End Confessional: Hinata.)**

* * *

The camera cut to the night sky. Crickets chirped as the camera panned down to the elimination area. The eight Rhinos sat on the stumps.

Chris stood in his usual spot, though the host seemed to be annoyed, as his brow was furrowed and his mouth was puckered to one side as he looked over the days' losers. "I gotta be honest with you guys," he whined, "I'm not really feeling the dramatic tension here!"

"That's because there is no tension," Kiba said glumly. The boy had the little clay figurine Deidera had made of him and his pup clutched in his left hand.

"Damn right there's no tension," Sasuke said, glaring at Kiba, "Dog-boy here messed up for the final time."

"Let's just get it over with," Temari said quickly, shooting a sympathetic glance towards Kiba.

"Fine, fine, have it your way," Chris pouted. "If I call your name, come get a marshmallow, okay? Deidera, you are safe."

Deidera nodded, and pat Kiba on the shoulder as he walked by to get his marshmallow.

"Konan, Shikamaru, Temari, Shino," Chris rang off the names, and the number of campers still seating dwindled as more names were called. "Sakura, you're safe too."

Shino nodded and stood up, leaving just Sasuke and Kiba sitting down. The two shot each other a glare, though Kiba's was more sulky and Sasuke's radiated confidence.

"Kiba, Sasuke, this is the final marshmallow…it goes to…

…

…

…

…

…

…

Sasuke." Chris called, "yeah, really not too dramatic tonight, huh?"

Kiba sighed and Akamaru let out a sad whine as Sasuke joined the rest of the safe campers at the bonfire. "Guess we blew it, buddy," he told his dog sadly.

Temari walked over to the boy and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's not personal, Kiba. We just have to do what's best for the team."

Kiba nodded, "I understand, guys. No hard feelings. I'm sorry I screwed up again."

"I'm gonna miss this little guy, though!" Sakura squealed, running up to Akamaru and scooping it up. She kissed him on the forehead, and Akamaru gave her face some happy licks. Sakura giggled and turned to Kiba. "It was nice to meet you, Kiba. Take care of this little guy!"

"You know it!" Kiba grinned. He looked over the rest of his team. "Err, I know this is a bit awkward, guys, but can I have a word with Konan before I go?"

The rest of the Rhinos looked surprised, but quickly pushed Konan to the front of the group and scorched away from the elimination area. The goth walked up to him, her usual bored expression plastered on her face.

"What's up?"

Kiba led her away from the others and lowered his voice. "Err, well I wasn't exactly planning on going this early, and so I thought I'd have more time to plan this out…" he looked hopefully at the pretty goth, "is there any chance I can get your number? I'd really like to take you out after this show is over. Grab some coffee or something, y'know?" His tone got a little flustered, "and, uh, of course Akamaru can come too, I know you like him!"

Konan's eyebrows rose slightly upon hearing Kiba's question, but she quickly knit her expression back into it's usual apathy. She seemed to consider it for a moment, and Kiba waited on with baited breath.

"Kiba…I'm sorry, but I don't really have an interest in dating you," she finally said bluntly. She was considerate enough to keep her voice down, but Kiba still looked crestfallen. "I haven't even known you for two weeks, and you're really not my type." She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry. It was nice to meet you, though."

Kiba swallowed his pride and shot her a half-hearted grin. "Hey! No problem…all good!" He quickly brushed past her and grabbed his luggage, ready to get the hell out of there as soon as possible.

"Any last words, Kiba?" Chris asked him.

"I guess bringing a puppy to this show was a bad call, not that it's his fault," Kiba laughed, "sorry to let the team down. Make sure to destroy the Foxes!"

"We'll miss your energy, Kiba," Shino said, stepping forward to offer his friend a handshake. "It wasn't easy voting for you."

"You voted for me too? Bastard!" Kiba retorted playfully, accepting the handshake and then slugging Shino on the shoulder. "Ahh, can't say I blame you. Alright then, bye everyone!"

Everyone voiced their goodbyes or waved silently to the boy as he began to walk down the Dock of Shame. All except one purple-haired goth, who looked off to the side sadly as the Boat of Losers sped away into the night.

* * *

**(Confessional: Konan.) **

"I feel bad turning Kiba down," Konan admitted, looking more glum than usual, "but I didn't come here for a boy. I came here to win some money." She is silent for a few moments…looking dully off to the side, "I'm going to miss him, though…his sunny personality was…nice." She chews at the piercing in her lower lip, a habit born out of uncertainty. "Besides, we wouldn't have worked together…" she looks to the camera, as if for reassurance, "right?"

**(End Confessional: Konan.)**

* * *

"Rhinos, you may go!" Chris told the seven remaining Rhinos.

The Rhinos filed away from the ceremony. Konan had her eyes glued to the shadowy ground as she absentmindedly followed the path back towards the cabin. She heard someone fall into step with her and looked up to see Shino there.

"You okay?" The boy asked quietly. "I know you and Kiba were friends."

"I'm fine," Konan deadpanned. "He messed up, so he had to go. Plain and simple."

Shino nodded. "It is regrettable. Who knows how useful he could have been if he had not brought his dog with him. But…I was more referring to your emotional attachment to him."

Konan's eyes narrowed. "I did not have an emotional attachment to Kiba," she lied, though her tone was even and firm. "You misunderstand."

"You are lying," Shino shot back, just as blunt and even as Konan. "Don't play me for a fool, Konan."

"This conversation is _over_." Konan hissed, quickening her pace in an attempt to get away from Shino. He let her go, staring after her retreating form. He adjusted his sunglasses.

"How interesting…"

* * *

_**Voting Confessionals: **_

Deidera: Sorry, Kiba...but that's two mess ups, hn!

Kiba: I vote for Sasuke, not that it matters. That guy is a mega-jerk!

Konan: I vote for...Sakura...ugh.

Sakura: I vote for Kiba! It sucks to lose that cute puppy, though!

Sasuke: So long, Dog-Boy. Good riddance.

Shikamaru: I vote for Kiba.

Shino: Unforuntate, but necessary. I vote for Kiba. It is not pleasant.

Temari: Perhaps it was a mistake to get rid of Karin when we did. Kiba has proved to be a disappointment.

* * *

_**Votes:**_

Kiba: 6 votes - (Deidera, Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Shino, Temari).

Sasuke: 1 vote - (Kiba).

Sakura: 1 vote - (Konan).

* * *

**Rampaging Rhinos: Sasuke, Sakura, Temari, Shikamaru, Shino, Deidera, Konan.**

**Fierce Foxes: Naruto, Ino, Itachi, TenTen, Kisame, Karui, Kurotsuchi, Hinata.**

**Voted Off: Sai, Bee, Tayuya, Fu, Karin, Lee, Kiba.**

* * *

_**Last Words:**_

**Sai** \- "Those idiots will drag your team down, mark my words."

**Bee** \- "I tipped my hand too early, but I ain't surly. I had fun, and I bet my homies will have won. Catch ya later, fools!"

**Tayuya** \- "Not only is my team a bunch of sissies, they're also idiots! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, I was your toughest player!"

**Fu** \- "It was awesome getting to know you guys! Kick some Fox butt!"

**Karin** \- "This whole experience was a waste of time. I can't believe you imbeciles eliminated me. What a joke."

**Lee **\- "While I may not agree with your decision, I respect it. It was an honor to play with you all!"

**Kiba **\- I guess bringing a puppy to this show was a bad call, not that it's his fault. Sorry to let the team down. Make sure to destroy the Foxes!

* * *

**And Kiba bites the figurative dust! I really enjoyed writing his dynamic with Konan and Shino, but let's face it. Akamaru is a must for his character and theres no way a little puppy wouldn't cause trouble for the team. So, 16th is where Kiba ends up in! He also gets shot down by Konan...ouch. But, was it really how she felt?**

**I know the Foxes kind of took a back seat this chapter, and there wasn't much SasuSaku, but I gotta spread the love a bit! Give some time to the characters who haven't featured as much like Deidera and Kurotsuchi! **

**\- Who do you think will get eliminated next?**

**\- Does Konan actually have a bit of a crush on Kiba?**

**\- What will come of Naruto's awkwardness around Hinata?**

**Leave a review if you enjoyed! I'll catch you guys in the next episode! **


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